Harry Potter and the Path to Ascension
by Nairda
Summary: The Battle of Hogwarts is over. In the months to follow... ancient knowledge stumbles upon Harry, and the realm of alchemy, immortality, and Ascended beings, becomes the backbone of this new saga.
1. Chapter 1

**Author´s Note:**

-This story starts at the end of Deathly Hallows Chapter 36.

-I'm only keeping this story canon with the books and the epilogue, but not the years in between. I'll try to keep things as canon as I can, but there'll definitively be some changes.

-My intention is to add to the external magic showed in the books, the internal magic that is mentioned in the esoteric currents like Hermetism, Alchemy, Rosicrucianism, and the theosophical currents associated with Helena Blavatsky and her followers. Every thing mentioned in this story is supposed to be true in some of those currents.

-I hope you like it.

-Special thanks for my beta HyperLily.

* * *

**Prologue**

"... I´m putting the Elder Wand," he told Dumbledore, who was watching him with enormous affection and admiration, "back where it came from. It can stay there. If I die a natural death like Ignotus, its power will be broken, won´t it? The previous master will never have been defeated. That´ll be the end of it."

Dumbledore nodded but said, "If you are never defeated, yes, Harry, but if you ever find yourself even disarmed in a future combat even if it´s not a deadly one, the wand will change its allegiance. If your opponent doesn't know you possess the wand, when he dies it will be the end of it. But if he knows, he´ll just have to guess where it is and believe me Harry that won´t be a difficult guess. I´ll suggest that if you are not interested in using it, then at least find a far better place to put it away."

"Thanks professor, I understand." he turned away from the painted portraits, thinking now only of the four-poster bed lying waiting for him in Gryffindor Tower, and wondering whether Kreacher might bring him a sandwich there.

**Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry**

**May 2, 1998**

The trio walked all the way to Gryffindor Tower, were Harry left Ron and Hermione in the common room and walked tiredly to his four-poster bed. He lay in bed thinking of calling Kreacher and asking him for a sandwich, but he was too tired and slowly closed his eyes.

It was a smooth sound at first, but it grew into a noisy buzzing sound, He knew he had his eyes closed but could perfectly see his room, only that this time there was a bright tunnel forming in front of him and passing through the roof as if it didn´t exist. There was a silhouette of an approaching man and Harry almost jumped out of his skin, but he recognized him.

"Professor?"

"Yes Harry, its me." answered Dumbledore

"Am I dreaming?"

"Dreams and reality are closer than you think, but no. You are not dreaming Harry. And no, I´m not alive either, well at least not the way you are. I don´t have much time Harry and there are things I need to tell you, so please listen up."

"Yes, Sir."

"We humans, magic people and Muggles, tend to see the universe as a vast ocean of galaxies and stars. The majority still believe we are unique and alone. But the reality is that not only this Galaxy but the whole Universe is heavily populated. We are just a very very small part of an ever evolving body. I don´t have time to go into detail Harry, but nearly fifty thousand years ago, a terrible war shattered our solar system, a solar system that had at that time two suns, one of them was destroyed and is now what forms the gas giants and most of the matter at the rim of the solar system called the Oort cloud. That sun provided energy for our bodies in a way that the one we have can not."

"Before that happened, we humans lived on average thirty thousand years, not because we couldn't live more, but because it was the time needed to gather enough knowledge to be able to ascend into a higher plane of existence and continue our evolutionary process. The lack of energy of what was called the red sun, started slowly decreasing the amount of time we could live, our bodies died before we were able to gain sufficient knowledge to reach ascension and the energy on our bodies decrease to a point in which it was unable to use the entire power of our brains or body functions. The difference between wizards and muggles Harry is just that, energy. The best muggles can't reach even five percent of their brain functions and the best wizards don't exceed fifteen. Look at the difference between wizards and muggles, and now imagine a human with a hundred percent."

"What happened Harry, is that what once was a single magical world was torn apart by the forces of the red sun´s explosion, When we used to have a single body, we now have four."

"I´m sorry to interrupt professor, but why has no one taught us this before. I have never heard something like this."

"Ahh, you see Harry, that is because no one knows. Well at least I didn´t. I know now because of where I am. But please let me continue Harry, I know you´ll have many questions but I wasn't given too much time."

"Yes professor, sorry."

"As I was saying, we now have four bodies, The Physical, The Astral, The Mental and The Causal. This is very well known to us; you have studied it in many of your classes, but the realm of the causal body there is very little known, but now I can tell you. The Causal body is in a sixth dimension and is eternal, and in order to continue the process of evolution and have the ability to ascend, this body must again unify all bodies and gain the required knowledge in order to do so. What used to take thirty thousand years, is now gain in a multitude of incarnations. Even if you are not able to remember the other ones the Casual body does."

"I was allowed to tell you all this because of what you did Harry. A single act of heroism, like the one you performed, gains a spiritual advance far greater than years and years of study. You now have a far stronger connection with your Causal body than anybody else. Slowly and in time that connection will grow in strength, and you´ll be able to channel at will far greater energy than your physical body is supposed to have. You have to be very careful with this, as your body is not prepared to handle that amount of energy and you can kill yourself by burning up."

The tunnel was like a cascade of energy but on reverse, it seemed to pull Dumbledore back, his body was like dust being blown away by wind.

"Harry, go to France, find my friend Nicolas Flamel. He´ll be able to guide you. I'm e x t r e m e l y p r o u d o f y o u." and with that said, Dumbledore was pulled away and the strange tunnel closed. Harry lay in bed, but this time with his eyes fully opened.

He wasn't sure what to believe, The experience had been extremely real. In some ways even more real than what he considered to be reality, and the fact that he was feeling full of energy when a few minutes ago he had the intention of sleeping for a full week didn´t help him to disguise what he lived as a hallucination.

He stood up, his muscles were still sore, but he just felt like running or jumping. He didn´t know what happened. Maybe the tunnel got him connected to areas with much more energy that filled his batteries up, but the reality was that he just couldn't go to sleep now.

He stood still for a moment and placed both hands in his pockets, finding the elder wand in his left and his phoenix feather wand on his right. He grab them both inside his pants and a strange tingling sensation ran through his arms all the way from the top of his head to the tip of his fingers. He took the wands out, and held them at chest height. He could still feel the flow of energy. He focused his attention on this and felt the flow grow even stronger. He could see both wands glow slightly, especially the Elder Wand.

He remembered what Dumbledore said about being careful, so he pocketed both wands. The flow dimmed a little, but he could still feel it. He focused his attention again and the flow grew stronger once more. He watch both hands. They didn't have the very light glow of the wands, but if he forced his eyes, he could barely see them glow. He unfocused his attention and the sensation became nearly imperceptible.

He stood there for a few seconds thinking of what just happened. He felt energy flow through him like never before and he wasn't tired when he should have been dead asleep. Was everything he experienced a few moments ago real. Was he bound to find Nicolas Flamel and ask for help? He shook the thought out of his mind.

He stood there for a moment before deciding what to do. He searched through his pouch and retrieved the marauders map and his cloak, and pocketed both inside his robes. He then opened the door and headed to the common room.

Harry arrived there to find Hermione asleep in Ron´s arms and Ron snoring with his head resting in the sofa. He didn´t bother them and put his cloak on to avoid being seen and went through the portrait hole and headed to the kitchens. He was full of energy but still extremely hungry.

Half an hour later in which he delighted his belly with the special attention of the Hogwarts house elves, which were still serving food for the number of people in the Great Hall. He stepped outside the kitchens and put his cloak back on, beneath it he searched in the Marauders Map for Ginny and found her still in the Great Hall at the Gryffindor table, for which he headed.

Before arriving at the open doors of the Great Hall, he concealed himself near a wall to put away his cloak, and then proceeded to enter. The Hall was full of people, some of them sleeping on the benches or on the floor, as many families had stayed after the fight. Many others were chatting amongst themselves, and some were still eating what was left of dinner. He moved very quietly to avoid attracting attention, but the Hall soon fell silent and he could see people watching him. The few with whom he made eye contact gave him a warm smile and a short nod in show of appreciation which he returned. He turn to see the Gryffindor table and found Ginny with Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Bill, Charlie, Percy and George. He knew he had to say something about Fred, but he just didn´t know how, as he felt responsible for what happened.

Ginny was still sitting beside her mother, listening to the conversation between her, her father and Bill, while George was fast asleep with his head resting in his arms on top of the table and flanked by Percy and Charlie. Harry approached them with his heart pounding, with the same intensity he ventured into the forest to face Voldemort. Ginny looked up and caught sight of him and immediately started blushing. Mrs Weasley noticed and stood up.

"Harry dear, where were you."

"I went to bed, but couldn't sleep." He approached her a little more, "Mrs Weasley, I'm sorry about Fred. I... I wish I could have done something."

She reached up and gave Harry a motherly hug. "Thank you, Dear. I'm sure you did your best," she said with a trembling voice. "It's hard to believe that he's gone, and we will never forget him." She was silent for a moment, and realized that the boy in her arms needed as much comforting as she did. "But we still have each other."

She started sniffling, but took a deep breath and said, "We all heard when you spoke to Voldemort and know that you went to die for us. So don't you dare feel you didn't do enough, young man," and she hugged him even more tightly. Harry hugged her back shedding a few tears.

"Thanks, Mrs. Weasley. I don't know what I would have done without your family."

They separated and looked each other in the eyes.

"You would have been the same wonderful young man you are now Dear, only we would not have been able to say that we are proud to call you one of our family." Her tears flowed down her cheeks, and Harry had to bite his lips hard not to cry. Mr. Weasley and Bill gave Harry a supportive smile, while Percy and Charlie were far enough that they didn't hear the conversation. Ginny stood up and hugged and kissed her mother.

"I love you Mum."

"I love you too Dear."

She kissed her again, while taking a small glance at Harry and said, "Mum, I'm a little tired. I think I'll go to my room. Is it OK with you?"

"Yes Dear of course, but I'll go with you. I don't feel good in letting you go alone."

"No Mum its OK."

Harry took the hint and said, "Don't worry Mrs. Weasley, I'll go with her and we'll be with Ron and Hermione."

"Oh! OK Dear. Thank you. Good night then!" said Mrs Weasley with hesitation in her voice

"Good night Mum." said Ginny waving to his dad and brothers, while Harry did the same.

Harry and Ginny walked away, but Mrs Weasley stood standing, not knowing if she should follow them.

"Mum," said Bill, and she turned to see him. "Harry just faced Voldemort single handedly. I don't think there is a Death Eater alive that will risk facing him one on one. Don't worry. They'll be OK." and she sat down with relief etched in her face.

Meanwhile, Harry and Ginny walked silently towards Gryffindor tower. Ginny was looking to the floor not knowing what to say, or if she should say something, while Harry had his mind running at ten thousand r.p.m., thinking of the correct words to say. On their way up, they walked through a corridor that had big open windows on the left side, and a beautiful view of the night sky facing the lake. Harry took Ginny's right hand and gently pushed her near one of them.

"Ginny,"

They were face to face now. Harry kept hold of her right hand with his left, and slowly rested his right on her waist. Ginny placed her left in his forearm. She didn't answer, as she was looking intently into Harry's piercing green eyes.

"Gin, I'll understand if you are mad with me. I know I shouldn't have left you the way I did, but... But, I had to do it. If I hadn't ..." She raised her left hand to his lips, in a sign to quiet him and said.

"No Harry. I understand. I may not have liked it, but I know now that you had to do it. I know there are more important things than the two of us ..." Harry interrupted her.

"No!" He let go of her hand and grabbed her waist tightly with both his hands and pulled her closer. "You are the most important thing to me Ginny" she blushed, "Yes we had to do what we did in order to have a future. A future for all of us. But I can't hide the fact that I always thought of you when doing it." His face softened "I love you so much Gin, so..." She didn't give him a chance to speak, because she had grabbed his face between her hands and gave him a heart sealing kiss." Harry relaxed in a cloud of joy. He pressed her to him and gently held the back of her head, while Ginny crossed both arms behind his neck.

It was late, as they had gently kissed for what could have been hours, but that couldn't have mattered less, because they were back together. They were ensconced in a world of love in which hurt and suffering had no meaning. They walked embraced all the way to Gryffindor tower. They laid on a sofa near Ron and Hermione and cuddled together until they fell asleep in each others arms.

Next morning, Ron woke up to see a smiling Hermione looking intently to his right side. He turned and almost burst into a laugh, as he saw Harry's feet on one side and his head on the other, both resting on the arms of the sofa, but the funny part was that there was no sofa and Harry's body was missing. Ron knew he had covered himself with his invisibility cloak. It was hilarious, and more so if you added the dumb smile on Harry's face, even though he was deeply asleep.

"He looks so happy." said Hermione

"Yeah, it's the company. He missed us so much that he left the dorm room to sleep near us." said Ron half joking "Or maybe he's just happy to be able to sleep. But why did he come back down here? These sofas are certainly not more comfortable than our beds. Do you think he's afraid or something?"

"Oh, Ron. He's certainly not!" she said a little loudly, and turned again to see Harry as she saw something move, "Oh, sorry Harry, I didn't mean to wake you."

Two sets of arms appeared outside the cloak, as Harry stretched himself, "Don't worry," he said yawning, "I haven't slept so well since I can't remember. How long have you been awake?"

"Ron just woke up, but I have been awake for at least ten minutes."

"Why didn't you sleep in your bed, mate? It's certainly more comfortable than the sofa." asked Ron

"Hmm."

He wasn't able to finish when Ginny's voice could be heard saying "I don't think Mum would have liked that Ron." She was cuddled by Harry, looking directly to Ron and Hermione through the invisibility cloak, which she was unaware of.

Ron was watching the empty area between Harry's feet and head with a completely confused face. Hermione had a mischievous half-grin followed by a worried looked. She looked sideways at Ron and guessed how long it would take him to find out what was happening.

"Ginny?" said Ron

"No Ron, Moaning Myrtle." said Ginny

"Moaning Myrtle?" said Ron with an even more confused face.

Ginny was intrigued by Ron's reaction so she sat up and moved the Invisibility Cloak even higher so now Harry's body was almost completely visible. By sitting she could now feel the cloak pushing down on her head.

"Oh! Harry, what is this?" she said while pulling the cloak away, "Oh your cloak," she added as she pulled it off, appearing in plain sight of everyone.

"Ginny!" said Ron while glaring at Harry with an incredulous face, and that did it. Hermione burst out laughing. Harry couldn't hold it in either and as soon as Ginny found out what was happening, the three of them were laughing their lungs out. Ron wasn't glad neither to be the laughingstock nor that Ginny had slept with Harry. Even if it was on the sofa and in front of them. He was about to say something when Hermione elbowed him. She hugged and kissed him on the cheek and spoke to his ear in a low voice.

"Please let them be, honey. Look at them. I've never seen them this happy before."

He melted with the 'honey' and hugged her back and kissed her on the forehead. He then smiled and started laughing with them.

As soon as they calmed down. A big rumble filled the room and all turned to look at Ron.

"What?" said Ron, "I just didn't have enough to eat last night."

"That settles it then." said Harry, "To the Great Hall it is."

"Oh, No." said Hermione, "You two need a bath." she paused and reconsidered. "I mean, We all need a bath."

Forty minutes later …

"Hey mate give it a break, there's still plenty of food." said Harry

"I'mmm hum gggluk gry."

"Forget it Harry. He's a lost cause," said Hermione rounding up her eyes.

Ron swallowed his food and said, "Do you two actually know how many months we've been without a proper meal? I don't care if I get an indigestion, but I'm not letting anything vanish today."

They all laughed.

Harry suddenly felt a strange sensation on his right cheek. Different than the one he felt last night. He turned to his right side and saw Minerva McGonagall approaching and looking at him.

"Mr. Potter!"

"Yes, Professor."

"As soon as you finish your breakfast, will you, Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger join me in my office? Please! Minister Shacklebolt will like a word with you three."

"Yes, professor."

She smiled at them, something she almost never did, and said, "Thank you. I'll see you three in a moment then." She turned around and left to what was now the Head Mistress Office."

Harry turned to see Ginny and saw her face, "Oh! Gin, sorry. I should have asked if you could ..."

"Don't worry." she said, "I'll be with Mum and Dad, but you better tell me everything when you return."

"I promise." and he kissed her.

"Oi! That's my sister you know." said Ron

"Jealous?" asked Ginny

"Of course not." he said and kissed Hermione

"Oi! That's my sister you know." said Harry joking

"Yeah! Very funny mate." and they all laughed.

Several minutes later, the trio failed to find professor McGonagall in her normal office and had to check the marauders map. They saw her in what was now labeled Head Mistresses Office. They reached the gargoyle stairwell and found it flanked by two Aurors standing guard. One of them murmured something to the Gargoyle, which moved to let them pass.

"The Minister is waiting for you. You may pass." said one of the Aurors

"Thanks." said the three of them, and climbed the stairs to the Head Mistress Office. They knocked on the door and could hear professor McGonagall say from the inside.

"Come in, please."

They entered the room and could see Professor McGonagall and Minister Kingsley Shacklebolt. Both stood up, and the Minister approached them. He extended his hand to Harry, Ron and Hermione in turn while saying "Harry, Ron, Hermione. Please sit, we have some things to discuss." he said while conjuring three chairs. They all seated down.

"Thanks for coming." said the Minister, "There are some things I have to ask you. First, I'd like you to keep the matter of the Horcruxes quiet and secret. We don't want new Dark wizards, or even immoral curious people, or plain low-conscious ones running around creating Horcruxes."

The trio looked to each other with an astonished look on their face, so the Minister added.

"We were close to you Harry, when you told Voldemort that there were no more Horcruxes. Thankfully you spoke in a sufficiently low voice that only Minerva and me heard."

"I'm sorry Minister, I should have paid attention." said Harry

"You don't have to give excuses Harry. What you three did, could not have been done by anyone else. We are not only proud of you, but the wizarding world is indebted to you all. I only want you three to understand, that a Horcrux is just a containment vessel and is really a threat if used by a really powerful dark wizard, like Voldemort. You must know that the process of creating one uses normal imbuing magic to permeate one soul to the object, and is the same magic use to apply spells to different objects, like protective spells or even curses, and magic like the one used on the sorting hat. This procedure is neither bad or evil or dark, but the process of fracturing one soul and using that part to contain it in the Horcrux is one of the darkest magic in existence and requires the destruction of a human being to create. So I'm asking this for the protection of the people being used to create a Horcrux."

"We understand Minister. We won't talk about it again."

"Thanks. I knew you would understand."

"Minister if I may ask?"

"Yes Harry, what is it."

"Why do you say that a Horcrux is only a threat if it's used by a really powerful dark wizard."

"Let me answer that by saying first, that it's definitely better that no one has a Horcrux. Having said that let me give you an example. Tell me the name of any Death Eater Harry."

"I don't know, eh! McNair?"

"OK McNair. Do you see any problem for an Auror to duel and defeat him?"

"No, I think he's a little clumsy by the way."

"I think that too, so you see. If McNair creates a Horcrux it make no difference unless we kill him, and then if he crossed the line again, I see no problem in taking him out again. You see the difference now. We'll never be really threaten by a McNair, but a Voldemort is something completely different, as he is able of not only to out-duel our Aurors, but also out-thinking almost everyone, so that is why he is a threat, and more so with a Horcrux, because if we are able to defeat him, he could do it again and again and again."

"I see Minister, thanks."

"No problem Harry. Now the second thing I wanted to ask, but that I can guess is, what were you doing in Gringotts? I can guess that you went to find a Horcrux. Am I right?"

"Yes Minister." answered Harry

"OK, To put it simple, the goblins want your heads on a silver platter," he smiled, "well lets just say that they are not happy with you, because you tarnished their reputation as an unbreakable bank, and they are now demanding your arrest and compensation for the damages incurred. They are not stupid to demand this publicly, because they will certainly alienate the entire wizarding world if they do, but they sent a direct request to me."

"They didn't waste time." said Harry

"They certainly didn't, but with what I know now, I will take care of it."

"What will you tell them, Minister?" asked an anxious Hermione.

"We'll reach an agreement with them. The ministry will cover all repair expenses and explain to them that the break-in was necessary to defeat Voldemort, in exchange they'll drop the demand or, we'll make this whole thing public, and that will certainly kill their reputation with wizards and they'll receive nothing for repair expenses. Don't worry we'll handle it."

"Thank you, Minister." said Harry. Ron and Hermione nodded with relief on their faces.

The Minister relaxed in his chair, "OK then, What do you have planned for your future?" he asked to the three of them while looking sideways to Minerva.

"I think, I'll return here to finish my studies." said Hermione without any doubt

"That's good to hear Ms. Granger." said Minerva "What about you two, I imagine you are returning here as well?"

"Eh!" said Harry and Ron at the same time, and the Minister took the hint to steal them both from Minerva, "Harry, Ron. I know you two wanted to be Aurors. Just to let you know, we are letting anyone who fought in the Battle of Hogwarts to apply for Auror training. We could use a hand, and I believe you two won't have a problem nailing the examinations."

"I..., I really don't know Minister. I really want to become an Auror, but my family has suffered a great loss lately. I..., I'll like some time to think about it, if it's OK with you." said Ron

"Of course Mr. Weasley. I understand perfectly well, and I'm truly sorry for your loss. Please feel free to approach me at any time if you wish to join in the future."

"Yes, Minister. Thanks a lot."

"I'm sorry for Fred too Mr. Weasley. It's a loss we'll all mourn. If there is anything in which I can help, please let me know."

"Thanks professor. I will."

"What about you Mr. Potter.?" asked the Minister.

"I'll like some time too, Minister. It's not that I don't want to join, I certainly do, but these last months have been very hard to go by, and I think I need some rest. If not physical at least psychological. I want to relax a little and not have to watch my back for a change."

"I understand Harry." He said, but couldn't mask his disappointment. "Please remember, that the doors for the Department of Magical Law Enforcement will be open for the three of you always, and that any intention of joining the Aurors will have a full endorsement from my part. You have done for our society, what many Aurors have fail to do in their entire careers."

"Thank you, Sir." answered the trio in unison.

"What about school, Mr. Potter?" asked Minerva

"I don't know professor. I really want to be an Auror, and I wouldn't like to wait another year."

"We are going to give personal assistance to any seventh year student who wants to finish school, but that are unable to attend. Please don't brush aside the possibility of finishing your seventh year. It will open your doors in the future, and I'll certainly won't like the two of you failing to accomplish that."

"Yes, professor. If it's OK with you, we can come back during the summer to see in what ways we could do both." said Harry taking a side look to Ron.

"Yes, that will be nice." said Ron

"OK then. Owl me when you are ready, and please don't wait until September first."

"No professor. We'll get in touch much sooner than that." said Harry

"Perfect. That'll be all then. You can return to your families."

They said goodbye to professor McGonagall and Minister Shacklebolt and left the office, and went to prepare themselves to leave for the Burrow.

"Kingsley, you should give them a break. They deserve it. You said it yourself, they have done more than many Aurors."

"I know Minerva, but those three, specially Harry, commands great respect, and will give our society a greater sense of security if they are on board. Also, they are going to be the mark for many dark wizards, again especially Harry, everybody knows he now possesses the elder wand, and it will be easier to protect him, if he is with Aurors."

"Just don't use him for your personal agendas, Kingsley." She said with a serious face.

"You know I won't, but I can't deny that having him in the Ministry will make things easier for all of us. Let's give it a thought, and let's talk later and see how we can make them move forwards in their careers and finish school at the same time."

"Yes, let's do that, let's do that..."


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note:**

- Special thanks for my beta HyperLily for making this story readable.

* * *

**Chapter One**

**The Burrow**

**May 29, 1998**

"Mum! Have you seen Harry?" said Ginny entering the kitchen and grabbing a piece of toast.

"Yes, Dear. He said he'll be at the pond. I don't know what's gotten into that boy. He's the last to go to sleep every day, and is the first waking up the next. You should speak with him. That is definitely not healthy."

"Yes, Mum. I will." answered Ginny rounding up her eyes.

"Don't try to blow me off Ginevra. I'm being very serious about this."

"I know Mum, but I can't force him if he's not sleepy. The way I see him, he is very much awake, every time." said Ginny, while hiding the real reason to Harry's condition. "And I can't see any sign of Harry being weak or sick, on the contrary, I see him getting stronger every day."

Molly stood looking at Ginny, and after a few seconds turned her head into the stove and added, "All I'm saying is that's not normal, and there could be consequences, and that it will be nice if he were to go to a healer to get a check up."

"Mum, Harry's OK, but I promise that if I see something wrong with him, I'll take him personally to a Healer. Is that fair?"

Mrs, Weasley sighed, "Yes Dear. That's OK. Please keep an eye on him."

"I will Mum, both of them." she said while smiling.

Mrs Weasley chuckled while Ginny went out to look for Harry, "Youth, those were good years."

Near the pond, Harry was seated with his back resting on a tree. He was in deep concentration. He was focusing all his attention to the energy flow on his body, as he had been doing every day since he arrived from Hogwarts. He could feel the energy flow not only from his head and arms, but from his whole body. He had been able to increase the flow of energy completely unopposed for several weeks, growing the intensity with great caution. At first it felt as if he could do this for ever, increasing and increasing the flow of energy without limit. But after several weeks of doing so, he started to feel a strain, as if an electric current was passing through his arms. He somehow knew deep inside him, that this was what Dumbledore mentioned about being careful. He knew that if he were to use magic in an uncontrolled situation, he could very well exceed his body limit and over strain himself and even burn out. He knew this, because the energy moving inside him was very intense.

Through the weeks that followed the Battle of Hogwarts, and his self-taught inner training, he had come to a point in which he had so much energy inside him, that he only slept for a few hours at the most. He stayed in bed for a while, so as to not disturb the others, but he was too much lightened up from the inside, to hold still for too long, and that had prompted a very thoughtful Mrs. Weasley to worry about. That was something he would have to take care of, but not now.

He continued caressing his flow of energy in such ways, that he was able to focus a tight coherent stream of energy through his fingers or through his hole hand. He was at the moment projecting a non-verbal Wingardium leviosa spell, but to no avail, he even tried it verbally mimicking wand movement, but nothing. He knew he was channelling even more energy than what he did with his wands, but for some reason nothing was happening. He knew that wandless magic followed different principles, but couldn't get an empirical reason as to how or why. At that moment Ginny arrived with a big smile.

"Hi handsome." she said while kneeling besides him, and gently kissing him on his right temple.

Harry smiled affectionately, and kissed her back. "Hi Gin."

"Mum asked me the same today."

"Yeah, I can imagine. I stayed for two hours awake in Ron's room, but it was too much, I had to get out."

"Do you think we should tell her?"

"No Gin, I'd prefer not to. At least not for the moment."

"Well we have to do something to calm her."

"Yeah I know." he said and sighed, "I was thinking of moving out. I don't want to exceed my welcome ..."

"Oh no! You are not going away and leaving me here again. Do you understand Potter?" she said with a serious face, "At least not until next term." she calmed, "We'll figure something out honey." she kissed him, "I promise, and you'll never exceed our family's welcome, because you are one of the family and you know it."

"Yeah I know Gin, but I really don't want to talk about this now. I want to understand it first and if I stay, I'll have to explain myself. I promise I'll come every day."

"What part of 'Do you understand' didn't you understand. I'm not letting you go..."

"Gin, I'll have to go someday ..."

"I said no." she grabbed his face between her hands and kissed him, "Give me any other reason, and I'll agree, but not for this one. You stay, and we'll deal with it. I'll deal with it. I love you." and she kissed him again.

"Oi! That's my sister you know." said Ron smiling, while Hermione laughed under his arm.

Harry half smiled, and Hermione knew that something was wrong. They both reach them, and seated themselves close by.

"What is it, Harry?" asked Hermione

"Nothing."

"You have that look. You are not fooling me." she said.

"It's Mum. She's been asking the same, and Harry wants to go away to avoid explaining things." said Ginny

"No way mate! I'll go tell her to shut up." said Ron

"You can't say that to your Mother, Ron." said Hermione while turning to look at Harry, "Do you think it's wise to keep quiet Harry. If you tell her ..."

"It'll be worse Hermione. I barely understand what's happening to me. If I say something now, and I'm unable to explain, it'll give everyone a reason to say that I should go for a check up at St. Mungo's, or somewhere else, and I want to be left alone for a change. I'll figure this out, and when I do, if it's still necessary to say something I will."

"Well then, you should go find Mr. Flamel." said Ron, and after seeing Ginny's upset face, he added. "What? Dumbledore told him, I'm just reminding him."

"What part of 'I want to be left alone for a change' didn't you understand Ron?" said Ginny, turning to look at Harry, "If she says something again, I'll talk to her, I promise."

"Thanks Gin. I know its not a big deal, but I don't like her to worry all day. If she says something, tell her that I'll go with a healer if I feel bad."

"That's what I told her today. That I'll take you myself if that happens. That's why I hope she doesn't mention it again."

"Thanks."

"Well then. How are you feeling?" asked Ron.

"Hmm. Considering that I'm sleeping a couple of hours at the most, I feel great. I feel full of energy."

"And what about the flow of energy Harry? Are you still able to control it?" asked a worried Hermione.

"Well that changed a little."

"In what way?" asked Ginny.

"Remember that I told you that I was able to increase the flow of energy without impediment, every single day?"

"Yes."

"Well, today I felt like I stuck my finger into an electric outlet, but not as strong. It felt like I reached a limit, and if I exceed it, it starts straining my body."

"What's an elekrit outlet?" asked Ron, while Ginny turned to look at Harry for the answer.

"Oh! Yeah, sorry. It's something that the muggles use to make things work, you have to connect things to this outlets and the electricity inside it, makes them work."

"Like magic?" asked Ginny

"Something like that, but the thing is, that if you put your finger inside them, the feeling is like being hit by a smaller version of the cruciatus curse, well what I'm feeling is a smaller version of putting your fingers in an electric outlet or a very small version of the cruciatus curse. The thing is that if I press harder, the sensation gets even worse, and maybe I end up burning my self out like Dumbledore said. I compared it to electricity, because a very big discharge of it can burn you out, so I guess its something similar."

"Yes, if you put too much electricity into a cable it will also burn out. It makes sense Harry, our bodies must be able to channel some amount of energy before exceeding its capability, if you do, you burn out. There must be ways for you to increase that ability, that's why Dumbledore wants you to find Nicolas Flamel. You should contact him." added Hermione

"I don't know if I want to Hermione, I don't even know what to do with this extra energy."

"In time you'll know Harry, but for the moment it will give you extra capacity to avoid a burnout. You just don't know if you'll be able to control it, and if you don't then its better to have your body ready for it."

"You may be right, but I'll pass for the moment. I want to enjoy the holidays at least."

**The Burrow**

**June 8, 1998**

Harry was returning after an early walk through the woods. He had been testing dual wielding wands. It had been hard to replicate a hand movement in reverse, and hadn't been able to cast two spells at the same time. He was able to produce a protego spell with his left wand and keep it up, while casting another spell with his right wand, but some times he lost focus and both spells fizzled out. It had been almost impossible for him to do it at the same time. One thing was having a lot of energy, and another, was having the ability to use it, even though wielding a single wand produced very powerful spells.

He reached the house, and got inside and into the kitchen. He saw Mrs Weasley cooking breakfast, and Mr Weasley seated at the table reading the Daily Prophet.

"Good morning," he said.

"Good morning Dear." said Mrs Weasley while continuing cooking

Mr. Weasley brought his head out of the news paper and said, "Oh, good morning Harry." He put the Prophet down and reached for an envelope, "This arrived for you a few moments ago." He said while handing it to Harry

He took it, and saw the seal of Gringotts on it. He turned to look to Mr. Weasley and received a nod of encouragement, so he opened it and it read:

_Mr. Harry James Potter Evans_

_ We have been unable to reach you this past year, and as _

_you have already become of age, there are matters that need _

_your attention. If it's of your convenience, we would like to request_

_an audience this Friday, June 12._

_Sincerely,_

_Griphook_

_Account Manager_

_Gringotts Wizarding Bank_

_So he got reinstated after all, _thought Harry, while dropping the letter on the table and looking at Mr. Weasley, "They want an audience on Friday. It seems there are matters that need my attention, as I've become of age."

"I thought so." said Mr. Weasley.

"You did? I thought they were going to demand something for our break in."

"No son, that has been taken care of, and you already knew that."

"Yeah, I did, but still... Well, nothing. I'll go on Friday and see what they want."

"You should confirm them the same way Dear." said Mrs. Weasley "You may use Errol... or maybe it'll be better to use Pigwidgeon."

"Thanks Mrs. Weasley. I'll go see if Ron is awake."

"Don't you want some breakfast first?"

"Oh! No thanks. I'll wait for Gin... Ron, Hermione and Ginny, so that we can have breakfast together." said Harry blushing

"OK Dear." said Mrs Weasley smiling, while Mr. Weasley did the same under the newspaper.

Harry went upstairs to Ron's room, and wrote the reply to Griphook, and waited for Ron to wake up to ask him if he could use Pigwidgeon. After sending the owl away, they both went down and waited in the living room for Hermione and Ginny to come down. When they did, the four went to have breakfast.

"Did you sent the note Dear?" asked Mrs. Weasley.

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley. I sent Pigwidgeon."

"What note?" asked Ginny

"A note for Gringotts. I received a letter from them today. They asked if I could go on Friday."

"Why?"

"They said, they have matters to discuss, because I have come of age."

"What matters?"

"They didn't say."

"You should ask Harry." said Ginny with a concerned face.

"Harry has a vault in Gringotts. They may want to arrange the papers to properly assign it under his name. I don't think there is something to worry about." said Mr. Weasley.

"I know Dad. I just don't trust Goblins, and less if it has to do with Harry, Ron, or Hermione." said Ginny while turning to look at Harry, "I'll go with you."

"What? You are his lady knight in shining armor?" asked Ron joking, "I'll be your squire Sirmadam."

"I'm being serious Ron," said Ginny while turning to look at Harry. "I'm going with you."

"It was a serious joke," said Ron to Ginny, and then added to Harry. "I have your back mate."

"I don't think it's necessary, but if you want to go, we can visit George in Diagon Alley after I finish in Gringotts." said Harry.

"That's a good idea Harry. We should definitely do that." added Hermione

**Diagon Alley**

**June 12, 1998**

Friday arrived, and the four of them went to Diagon Alley via floo powder as only Hemione had an apparition licence, even though at least Harry mastered it now.

It was the first time since the Battle of Hogwarts that they were out in the public. The four of them walked towards Gringotts, while receiving smiles from many people. They arrived to the bank to see it fully repaired. The four entered it, and the hallway went silent. Goblins turned to watch, and one needn't be a Wizard to perceived the tension in the air. A few moments later Griphook arrived, and stood in front of them.

"Mr. Potter. This is a private matter and may take some time." said Griphook while looking at the others and hinting them to go away.

Hermione took the hint fast and said. "Eh. Harry. We'll be with George." while she elbowed Ron who added.

"Yeah Harry. We'll wait for you there."

Ginny on the other hand didn't move. Not because she didn't understand the hint, it was just because she wasn't leaving Harry alone. Not until she knew that every thing was going to be OK with the Goblins. The situation didn't suggest something wrong, but she didn't care.

"We'll see you when we are done." said Ginny to Hermione and Ron, but without taking his eyes from Griphook, as if saying 'Don't even try to send me away.'

The Goblin turned to look at Harry and added. "Mr. Potter?"

"It's OK." he answered beaming with love towards Ginny, and then turned to Hermione and Ron. "You can come too if you want."

"No, Harry. You two go ahead. We'll wait for you at George's." said Hermione pulling Ron away.

The four separated. Hermione and Ron left the bank towards Diagon Alley, while Harry, Ginny and Griphook went towards one of the doors at the sides of the main hall. They went through it and into lifts. The elevator descended several floors until it stopped, and the doors opened. There were many cubicles and Goblins and Wizards working in them. They passed through a door that led to an elegant and comfortable meeting room. Griphook pointed towards the chairs that were around a circular table, which looked more like single seat sofas than chairs.

"Please wait for me here. I'll be back with the required documents." said Griphook bowing professionally in common Goblin manners, and then turned and walked away.

Harry and Ginny sat, and she didn't waste time to ask. "What do you think this is all about?"

"I can only guess what your dad told me. That they'll be assigning my vault under my name or something similar. I should have asked before he went away. Guess we'll have to wait now." answered Harry shrugging.

It didn't take much time for Griphook to return, as he probably had his cubicle nearby. He passed through the door carrying more than an inch thick stack of documents and a wooden box. He approached the expensive looking table and deposited everything in between Harry and the seat he struggled to climb. The goblin knelled in the chair and reached for the documents, and started talking to Harry matter of factly without taking his eyes from the stack of papers.

"These Mr. Potter are your inheritance documents, which will entail you with your family and godfather's estates and money. You will have to sign all documents to receive full endorsement of them. It is obviously my responsibility to explain every document before you sign, and point out the responsibilities you incur in doing so. Is this clear for you? May we begin?" asked Griphook matter of factly.

"Sure." answered Harry taking a side look to Ginny, who smiled.

Griphook pulled the stack of papers close to him, and took out the first deed. He placed it in front of Harry saying. "This Mr. Potter is a 724 acres property. It had a small structure built on it, but its been in disuse since the Potter family received it in inheritance, and is now in very bad condition. The property is mostly a forest now. It's located in Devon, a few miles south of Newton St. Cyres, and has a value of 289,000 galleons. You pay no taxes on it as it is abandoned. If you intend to use it for any commercial activity, you will pay 22 percent of your earnings as taxes. The amount will be deposited here into a Ministry of Magic Vault. Do you have any questions?"

"Do you know who did this land belong to?"

"Of Course. I have managed your family's account since I started working in Gringotts many, many years ago." he said a little taken aback. "The Potter family received it as inheritance from the Peverell family, as the last Peverell woman married a Potter."

Harry was perplexed. This meant that the property once belong to Ignotus. He kept looking at the deed with astonished eyes.

"Is something wrong, Harry?" asked Ginny with a worried look, and pressing his right arm gently.

"Eh?" he said turning towards her. "Oh, no. Sorry. I got away for a moment." he said smiling and turned back to Griphook. "Sorry. What about the next?" he asked looking at the stack of documents.

"I am sorry Mr. Potter, but if you have no further questions about this property I need you to sign it first, before proceeding." said Griphook handing a long and strange looking quill at him.

"Oh! Sure. Sorry." he said while taking the quill. "Where do I sign?"

"Anywhere." answered Griphook.

"Anywhere?" asked Harry looking for an empty space in the document where he could add his signature.

"Yes, Mr. Potter. You won't damage it. If that's your concern? It's a binding quill."

"Ah! A binding quill." he said without a clue of what that was. He lower the quill to the document, and after making contact with the deed it started glowing. Harry pull it up and saw that there was no mark on the document. He lower it again quickly trying to avoid looking ignorant, but Ginny was already giggling. He turned his head a little to take a look at her, and she mouth an I love you. He blushed smiling, and put his attention back to the deed and the binding quill. He pressed it to the paper and wrote his name, while the deed, quill and him glowed in a white-blue aura. He had barley raised the quill when Griphook took the deed away, and place it on the table to the left of the stack of deeds.

"You are now the owner of that property." he said while handing a second document. "This Mr. Potter is an 88 acres property. It belong to your Grand Father. It has an abandon house, which is in rather good condition. It's located in Devon, a few miles west of Godric's Hollow. Your Grand Father used to produce olives there, but your father didn't continue with this activity. The trees are still there though. The land and house have a value of 134,000 galleons, but if production is restarted, I'm certain its value will go up. Do you have any questions?" finished Griphook, while signalling Harry to sign the document.

"No." said Harry signing the deed.

As soon as he finished, Griphook took it away, and placed it below the first one. He took the third deed and handed it to Harry. "I'm giving you the deeds in order of value. This Mr. Potter was your Grand Parents house in London. It has a value of 127,000 galleons. It's located south of Hyde Park near Kensington road. The exact address is in the deed, but don't worry as I have some memories stored that will help you to directly apparate into your properties..." said Griphook, but wasn't able to finish as Harry interrupted him.

"Memories you say? What kind of memories? From whom?" asked Harry a little jumpy.

"Some are from your Grand Father, and some are from your parents. But I'm afraid we don't have the one belonging to your Godfather. I believe you already know the location of Grimmauld Place is that right?" answered Griphook.

"Where are those memories? Can I see them?" asked Harry with excitement.

"All in due time Mr. Potter. They are in this box, but I'm afraid we don't have a pensive to borrow. You'll have to ask someone else to help you with this. I would recommend you to buy one. But please Mr. Potter lets continue. If you have no questions regarding this house, please sign the deed so that we may move on."

Harry sighed taking a side look to Ginny, who gave him a supportive smile. He signed the third deed and handed it to Griphook, while the goblin handed him another one.

"This one is from your Godfather. Grimmauld Place. Number twelve I believe. The exact address is in your deed, but as I said, we don't have a memory to guide you to it. You do know the location of it? Don't you?" asked Griphook.

"Yes." answered Harry.

"Good. The property has an estimated valued of 81,000 Galleons. It could be more. It could be less. We have been unable to verify this as it is unplottable. Do you have any questions regarding this property?"

"No." answered Harry signing the deed and handing it back to Griphook.

Griphook took the deed and placed it below the signed ones, and then took another four deeds and gave them to Harry while saying. "These Mr. Potter, are four properties you have in perpendicular streets that come out into Diagon Alley. As of today, they are all being rented as store premises, and are the only income you possess. In order of value they are: 80,000 – 71,000 – 53,000 and 35,000 Galleons respectively. The four of them are being rented at a combined value of 1,912 Galleons per month, already discounting taxes. If you have no questions regarding them, please sign the deeds."

"No." said Harry raising his eyebrows, and signing the deeds.

Two documents remained, and as soon as Griphook received the ones being signed by Harry, he handed one of the two remaining. "This is your last property Mr. Potter. Your parents house at Godric's Hollow. It has an estimated value of 54,000 Galleons. Probably lower due to its damage, or probably much higher due to its historical value. If there are no questions, please sign it."

"Sure." added Harry.

Griphook received the last signed deed, and handed the last piece of paper to Harry. "The estimated total value of your properties is 924,000 Galleons, but this Mr. Potter is the Report from your Vaults."

"Vaults?" asked Harry and Ginny at the same time.

"Yes Mr. Potter. You have three. The Potter family vault. Sirius Black's vault, and your trust vault." answered Griphook.

"Trust vault?" asked Harry with a confused face.

"Yes Mr. Potter. Before you ask any other questions, please let me explain first." said Griphook looking at Harry with his head lowered, and his eyes raised.

"Sure. Sorry." added Harry frowning.

"When you were born, your father created a trust account for you. He transferred all the money on the Potter family vault, into Vault 687, your trust vault. This was done with the purpose of solving your financial situation until you became of age, and by law acquire all the Potter family properties. Currently this vault has 287,490 Galleons. It will be emptied and your money moved back to the Potter family vault. The vault you inherited from Sirius Black, has a total of 117,311 Galleons. It will also be emptied and transferred to the Potter family vault..." Harry raised his hand to stop Griphook from continuing.

"Why is that money being moved to the other vault. I understand that Vault 687 was a trust vault, but wasn't the other property of Sirius. Shouldn't I keep it?" asked Harry with a serious voice.

Griphook wasn't bother by this, but he sighed, and answered. "That's why I asked to refrain from further questions until I finish explaining everything. Every vault is the property of Gringotts Wizarding Bank. A contract of co-ownership is signed with every wizard willing to have an account in this Bank. If for any reason your fortune increases and the vault you currently have is not enough for your needs, It will be expanded or your belongings moved to a bigger and safer vault. Vault 687 was just a temporary vault that held your trust money. Sirius Black's vault was kept available, until you became of age and were able to receive his inheritance. We could have assigned any of these vaults as your permanent one, but the one normally used by the Potter family is the biggest and most secure of the three, without mentioning the one with the most valuables. Does this solve your question Mr. Potter?"

"Yes. Sorry." answered Harry with a sheepish face.

"Good then. Let's continue. The Potter Vault was emptied of money when your trust was created, but it received every income from your rents since it was emptied until today. That's more than 18 years, and it currently holds 390,048 Galleons. Once everything from the other vaults had been transferred to this one, you will have 794,849 Galleons. The document I gave you has to be sign for you to receive ownership of what that vault contains." finished Griphook.

"Wow." said Ginny with an astonished look.

"Yeah, tell me." stated Harry while signing the document.

Griphook didn't waste time and removed the document from Harry's side and stacked it with the other documents. He then moved the box he had been carrying towards Harry, who opened it. Inside it there were a total of 8 flasks filled with a silvery substance which Harry immediately identified as memories. There was also the key to his new vault.

"As I said, you will have to find or buy a pensive to look at them. If for any reason you lose or break one of those flasks, we have the originals archived with your deeds, and we can provide copies." said Griphook.

"Thanks." said Harry closing the box and putting it inside his expandable mokeskin pouch. He was about to stand up, when Griphook raised his hand to stop him from doing so.

"I don't wish to take more of your time Mr. Potter, but there are some things that I still need to tell you."

"Sorry. I'm in no hurry. I though we were finished."

"Almost Mr. Potter, almost. I wanted to add that as your account manager. I handle your investments. If you have any needs regarding your account, I'm here to help you. If you want to sell your properties I can handle that. If you need to make acquisitions, I can do that also. So please, let me know if you need some help with that."

"Sure. Thanks. I will." answered Harry with an unconvinced face.

"Is there something wrong Mr. Potter?" questioned Griphook frowning.

Harry sighed, and stood up. "Look Griphook. I don't mean to offend, but I don't trust you. If our past dealings have something to say, then I prefer to avoid doing any kind of business with you. I can't have a say in Gringotts matters, but if it was my decision, you wouldn't be managing my account."

Griphook was about to answer, but saw Ginny, and he paused. He turned to Harry, and wasn't allowed to say anything, because Harry confronted him.

"If she can't listen to what you are about to say, then don't say it. You may not want her to know, but she already does. I know very clearly that you don't place trust easily, but I trust her with my life."

Griphook didn't answer. He just turned his eyes to the floor and his head towards Ginny, and he bowed, but never looked at her. He then turn his attention to Harry and spoke. " I have been around Wizards for a long time, to know that the interpretation of agreements between them and goblins can be misleading. If you don't trust me. Then it's because I did something to erase that trust, and for doing so, I would had had to reach an agreement with you and then break it. The only time I reached an agreement with you, was on the house of William Arthur Weasley." He lowered his voice. "I agreed to help you, and your two friends get into Gringotts, and into the vault of Bellatrix Black Lestrange, in exchange for the sword. The moment I accomplished that, I had the right to the sword, and I took it, and with that the agreement was sealed..."

"You stole it!, and you know that. You never trusted us, even though we helped you escape from Malfoy Manor, and then you just ran away calling us thieves, and just left us to our own fate. How do you expect me to trust you. Even if I created the most perfect of contracts or agreements with you. How do I know that after it's ended you will not do the same. I build my trust through friendship and love, and that's a trust which outlasts every agreement Griphook." Harry calmed down after his outburst, and he added calmly. "Are you incapable of friendship? Are Goblins like that? Is that what makes us different? I was the best friend of a house elf. He saved our lives by giving up his, and if I had the chance to do the same for him, I'll do it without hesitation." a tear dropped through Harry's face. "So you see. I can relate to a house elf, but maybe it's just you, and I shouldn't pre-judge your race, but with you I can't relate. So no. I will not seek your help again. I will deal with my things in my own way, and I'll keep Gringotts matter with you to the minimum possible." Harry took Ginny's hand, and turned to leave the meeting room, but something that he never thought could happen, happened.

"Mr. Potter." said Griphook. His face changed. It wasn't showing the normal goblin sneer face of contempt, or his usual smirk. His face was a mix of confusion, empathy, but also shame. "I made a mistake. You asked me to help you get inside a Gringotts vault, and I told you that it was impossible. You proved me wrong. When we were discovered, I saw no way out of there, and I accept that I panicked, and thought that the only solution was to make them think I had been forced. You proved me wrong again. I saw you fearlessly climb a guardian dragon while setting it free. Your friends wavered but your strength steadied them. You fled this bank in a way no one had done before. You find ways of solving problems, that no one thinks possible, and you face obstacles that would make the greatest of warriors flee in panic. You are not a common Wizard Mr. Potter. You are a warrior of Life, and life gave me the greatest honor in helping you, and I panicked, and failed." he lower his head in shame, and added. "I will request that your account be managed by another one. One that I hope will earn your trust Mr. Potter." he took the stack of papers, and started walking away.

Harry gently stopped him, and said. "I was able to make all the things you mentioned, not because I'm some kind of mighty warrior as you said. It's because I have friends. True friends. Friends that are willing to give their lives for me, but that know that I'll do the same for them. Friends that know that we fight for things beyond that of personal gain. With Voldemort we fought for the right of being individuals, and not the extension of a single mind. We fought so that every living creature could make their dreams a reality, and not be force to live the twisted vision of a corrupted man." Harry sighed. "You succeeded in fulfilling your agreement, Griphook. Without you, I would have never been able to enter that vault, and we would have been unable to defeat Voldemort, and for that I thank you. But you did fail as a friend. You left us in our time of need, for personal gain. This last year was hell for me, and my friends. We fought. We cried, but we also learned, and I personally learned the value of forgiveness. It can't change the past, but it certainly can lay the foundation for a better future. The thing is that it requires two to work. I heard your words, and they felt real. It will take time to regain the trust lost, but I'm willing to give it a try if you are too." having said that, Harry released Ginny's hand, and extended it to Griphook.

The goblin stood looking at Harry's hand. He was perplexed, but the seriousness of his face returned. He turned to look at Harry at the same time he took his hand, and said. "It is an honor, Mr. Potter to be given the chance of being your friend. I failed you once, and only your courage salvaged the situation." he didn't let go of Harry's hand, and got closer and grabbed him also with his left. "You, your friends, and the house elf, showed me the true value of friendship, and I will treat this friendship as the most valuable of my possessions. I am a Goblin, Mr. Potter. You know the importance of giving our word, and as that I tell you: I will not fail you again, my friend." having said that, Griphook squeezed Harry's hand with both hands, while Harry did the same with his right.

"I will look forward to seeing you again." said Harry.

Griphook bowed, and said. "Mr. Potter." he straighten up and looked at Ginny adding, while bowing again. "Miss Weasley. I hope I see you both soon. Let me accompany you to the entrance."

"Thanks, Griphook." said an astonished Ginny.

They walked together to the entrance making small talk. There Harry saw a couple that could only be muggles in front of a goblin who had a sign on top of him that read:

Muggle money exchange

Current rate: 1 Galleon = 5.15 pounds

He had been curious about it, but it was the first time he could somehow get a glimpse at the real value of wizard money. They arrived at the entrance, and Griphook addressed Harry with an official seriousness.

"Mr. Potter." said Griphook, but Harry interrupted him.

"Harry, please. My friends don't call me Mr. Potter."

The goblin made his accustomed creepy smile. Not that he meant something bad. It was just the normal goblin smile, and he continued saying. "Harry, please consider what I told you. If you need to buy or sell a state, or if you need some advice in how to invest your money, please let me know."

"I sure will, Griphook."

They shook hands in a more formal than friendly manner, said their goodbyes, and Harry and Ginny left the bank.

They went outside, and Ginny couldn't hold it any longer.

"Merlin's beard, Harry. You have a fortune."

He smiled and said, "And a new friend."

"Yes, and that. But Harry really, you are a millionaire. I knew you had a lot of money, but not that much."

"Well. Technically I'm not a millionaire unless you exchange it to muggle money, because Griphook said I had almost 800,000 galleons. I know its a lot, but still I'm not a millionaire." added Harry.

"You are wrong. You are a millionaire if you add the value of your estates. They are worth even more than the money you have. You are close to 2,000,000 galleons. Merlin." she laughed. "I never thought I would be speaking to a millionaire, and even less kissing one." she approached Harry, and stole a quick kiss, and he blushed blood red.

"Wait." he said, while Ginny tried to kiss him again. "No Gin. Really wait. Not here." added Harry looking beyond, towards Diagon Alley. It seemed that news about them being there travelled fast, as there were people bunching up to take a look at them. Harry's instinct was to immediately go for his wands. He placed both hands inside his robes, and grabbed them both. Ginny noticed about the people, and Harry's reaction. She grabbed his left arm tightly while approaching him, and saying.

"Let's hurry to George's." she said while getting even closer to Harry's ear, and she whispered. "Relax. They are not here to fight us. My millionaire warrior."

Harry turned slowly to look at her. She was smiling slightly. He blushed, and relax the grip of both hands. He took his right hand out of his pocket and crossed it to his left towards Ginny, and held her arm, but he kept his left hand inside his robes holding the elder wand. He smiled at her and mouth an 'I love you'. They walked, towards Weasley's Wizard Wheezes, and arrived there shortly afterwards.

The store was full of people. Harry and Ginny stood at the entrance searching for the others and found Ron at one of the cash registers charging people for their purchases. Hermione was close by looking at the merchandise, while George was no where to be seen. They approached Hermione. She saw them, and smiled widely.

"How did it go? What did they want?" asked Hermione

Ginny burst out full of excitement. "You won't believe it. Harry is a millionaire."

"I knew it." added Hermione.

"No you didn't. At least not this much. He really is a millionaire. You wouldn't even guess how much. Try it."

"I don't know. Eh... 100 million galleon?"

"100 million galleon? Are you nuts. No body has that much" said Ginny a little taken aback by Hermione's guess.

Hermione turned to look at Harry shrugging, so Harry grabbed Ginny's hand and said. "Sorry Gin, but you are asking someone who also knows about the muggle world. Here you may think I have a lot of money, but for a great deal of muggles that's just pocket change.

"So how much do you have Harry?" asked Hermione.

"Almost two million Galleons, between money and estates." answered Ginny before Harry could answer. "And that is definitely not pocket change."

Hermione's eyes went wide, and said. "Wow. That's a lot of money Harry, and it definitely isn't pocket change."

"It was a figure of speech." said Harry defensively, and quickly changed subjects. "What is Ron doing there?"

"Eh. Oh! He's working. He offered to help George, and he instead offered him a job." answered Hermione.

"He has a job? That's great." said Ginny.

"Let's go with him." said Harry, and the three moved closer to Ron.

"Hey mate. Congratulations." said Harry.

Ron had just given change to a customer, and looked like he was taking an exam. He turned to look at Harry. "Thanks Harry." he sighed "Numbers are definitely not my strong, but George wants me here. He said I have to learn everything, but the exchange rate between galleons, sickles and knuts is killing me."

Harry, Hermione, and Ginny laughed.

"Don't worry honey. You'll get the hang of it." said Hermione.

"Yeah. If it doesn't hang me first." stated Ron.

Harry started felling a strange tingling sensation. Similar to the one he felt with McGonagall. But this time he felt it on his whole body. He turned to see at the direction he felt the sensation, and there was only an open door which lead to a set of stairs.

"So how much are you being paid?" asked Ginny

Harry's feeling grew stronger, and he kept following the origin of his sensations, that this time went behind Ron.

"Don't know yet. He hasn't told me. Wow! Cool down Harry." answered Ron to Ginny, while his eyes went round when Harry took one of his wands out, and was pointing it nearly at Ron.

Harry's face went dead serious, and Ginny didn't hesitate, her trust on him unmatched, and took her wand out too. At that moment George disillusioned himself out, and patted Ron's shoulder, who jumped in near panic.

"300 Galleons per month little brother, and yes Harry cool down. You are going to shy away my customers." said George smiling. "I'm just wondering how did you manage to know I was here? You turned to look at me the moment I reached down the stairs. I know for a fact that my disillusionment charm works great, because I have been doing this for a while, and no one has ever noticed me here."

"Eh. I don't know. It was just a feeling." answered Harry.

"Hmm. Just a feeling, eh? I know of only one other person who was able to have that 'just a feeling'. He used to mysteriously catch me and Fred when we were at Hogwarts." said George. His face went a little sad when he mentioned Fred.

"Who was he?" asked Ginny.

"Dumbledore."

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny turned to look at Harry in awe, but Ron reacted quickly.

"300 Galleons? The initial salary for a Hit-Wizard in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement is 700 Galleons." asked Ron.

"Well, that's because they don't live very long, and I'm also not the Ministry of Magic, and asking for 5 N.E.W.T.s. Either way I'm sure you'll prefer this than the 42 Galleons per month being paid by Flourish and Blotts, for a part time assistant." answered George.

"Ron. 300 Galleons per month is a lot of money." added Ginny.

"I'm the best paying employer in Diagon Alley little brother." stated George, and then said. "Come on Rooney, take a little break, and let Verity handle it for a while. There aren't too many customers now. Let's go upstairs to my office."

They walked away, and upstairs, leaving Verity, and another assistant in charge. They reached George's office. It was at the top of the premises. The room was big, and it was more of a laboratory than an office. Things were calmed for the moment, but there were marks around it, that showed that the room had had a lot of use in the past. Probably when Fred was still around.

There were two 2 person sofas, and one 3 person sofa. George went and lay down on the big one, while Harry and Ginny took a two seater, and Ron and Hermione took the other.

"So. How's the store doing?" asked Harry.

"Its working great Harry. It could be better if I wouldn't have to pay this rent, but still I'm doing great." answered George.

"Why George? Is it too expensive?" asked Hermione.

"Well, yes. It's Diagon Alley. Everything is expensive on it. We could have open on the cheaper perpendicular streets that end in Diagon Alley, but we wouldn't had had so many customers."

"How much do you pay for this?" asked Ron.

"A little more than 4,000 Galleons per month." answered George.

"What?" screamed Ginny, and then asked. "4,000 per month?"

"And a little more." answered George.

"How much do you sell per month?" asked Ginny, and then added. "You must sell a fortune to pay for everything, and still have an earning."

"Well after paying for the rent, for the products sold, the wages, operational costs, and bla bla bla bla, I'm still earning close to 2,000 Galleons per month, so, yes. We sell a lot here, but as I said, It could be even better if I'd own the place. But we are starting so, maybe I can come up with a lone from Gringotts in the future to pay for it."

They talked for nearly an hour about the store, and about Fred. They remembered old stories from the twins adventures, and laughed their lungs out from some of them. They cried remembering him, especially George, as he was the closest one. But it was good to see him up and working again, and with his usual positive attitude. He still said 'we' a lot instead of 'I', but he was definitely better. They said their good byes in George's office. Ron went downstairs to work after asking George what to do. George turned to see Harry, Hermione and Ginny, and with a mischievous smile disillusioned himself while waving them good bye. The remaining three laughed, and went downstairs said good bye to Ron, and walked to the entrance.

Hermione went outside first, followed by Ginny. Harry was about to exit the store, when he smiled a little and waved without looking to one of the corners, and then exited the store. A disillusioned George smiled to Harry's wave in his usual espionage spot in one of the store's corners.

On Diagon Alley, the three stopped for a moment to decide what to do. Harry spoke first.

"I need to buy a pensive, but I forgot to ask Griphook access to my vault. I'm not carrying a lot of money, and I really don't know how much they are worth, or where to get them."

"Why do you need one, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"Griphook gave me some flasks. They contain memories from my father and grand father on some of the estates I inherited. I need to view those images in order to be able to apparate there." answered Harry, and then asked. "Do you know were I could buy one?"

"I have seen some in Scribbulus Everchanging Inks." answered Hermione.

"Don't they sell inks, quills, and parchment?" asked Ginny.

"Yes they do, but not only that. That is what we usually buy, but they have many other things, including pensives." stated Hermione.

"Thanks, Hermione. Don't you two want to go to Florean Fortescue for an ice cream, while I go back to Gringotts? I saw it open, and I would like to ask if Florean is OK. I haven't seen him. If you want, I'll pick you up there after I buy the pensive." asked Harry.

"Hmm. It's actually a good idea. I've been wanting an ice cream since I can't remember." answered Hermione.

"Don't you want me to go with you?" asked Ginny.

"No. Its OK Gin. I won't be long. You can relax a little with Hermione, and have an ice cream." said Harry, while he opened up his pouch, and took some money and handed it to Ginny. "I won't be long. Promise." he finished, and gave Ginny a kiss, and a wave to Hermione.

He returned to Gringotts, and asked one of the goblins bank tellers for Griphook, who was summon an who arrived a few minutes later.

"Mr. Potter, is there something wrong?" asked Griphook.

"Harry, please, and no, there's nothing wrong. I just forgot to get money out of my vault, and I need some to buy that pensive." answered Harry.

"I'm sorry Harry, but we are currently making inventory of your other vaults. It is a common practice previous to moving the contents to the Potter Family vault. That way once everything has been move, the responsible can verify if something was lost in between. Its a way of assigning responsibilities, and I'm afraid that no one else is allowed in for the moment. If you can't wait. I could ask for a momentary loan from the bank to cover your needs, and it will automatically be refunded to the bank once your vault is accessible again. There will be no charge or interest of course, but in these cases we are limited to 100 galleons only. Do you want me to ask for it?" asked Griphook.

"Yes, please." answered Harry.

"What amount do you need?"

"Hmm. I don't know how much a pensive costs. But it'll be better if I take the whole."

"Good. 100 Galleons it is. Please wait a minute." said Griphook, and turned away and headed towards a goblin who looked like a cashier. He said something to him, and returned to Harry. "It will be a couple of minutes until they have it ready."

"No problem. Thanks, Griphook."

"You are welcome Harry."

"Tell me Griphook. About your other services. The buying or selling estates. If I'm interested in buying something, you said you could manage it. Didn't you?" asked Harry.

"Of course. Are you interested in acquiring something?" answered Griphook.

"Yes. I'm interested in buying the business premises used by Weasley's Wizard Wheezes. Do you think it's possible?" asked Harry.

"Everything is possible with the correct amount. I'll see to it. Once I have information, I'll let you know via owl, and if you are still interested, then you'll have to come here to authorize the transfer, and for signing the deeds."

"About that. Is it possible to put the deed under George Weasley? I really wouldn't want for him to know it's me."

The goblin was shocked. He knew Harry wasn't an ordinary wizard, but he was still shock by his generosity. "There is no problem with the money transfer, but the deed has to passed between seller and buyer, or through inheritance. Wizarding law demands it. If you pay for it, then the deed must fall upon you. What you do after, is your decision. If you want to forward it to Mr. Weasley, you may do so, but he will know it is you." answered Griphook.

"Is there a way of doing so without him knowing?" asked Harry again.

"I'm afraid not. Wizarding law demands that every commercial transaction of this type to be documented. Is there a reason for him not to know about this?" asked Griphook.

"Yes, because he won't accept it otherwise. I want to do this, because he is paying a lot of rent. I'd like to help him out of it. He wants to buy it, but I don't have to be great with numbers to know that he's unable to do so because his remaining earnings are not enough." stated Harry.

"Well, then. I would recommend that you buy the premises, and not charge him for the rent. There is no law that force anyone to charge for it, or to charge a minimum amount, and there is no reason for him to know that you own it. You could hire anybody to manage it, as it is being done by Gringotts with your other assets."

Harry's eyes went wide, and he smiled to Griphook. "Yes. You are right. I could do that. Thanks Griphook."

"There is only one problem. If he has the intention of buying it later, and you don't want him to know you are the owner, you'll have to reject selling it to him, or otherwise you'll be force to let him know its you."

"Hmm. Yes you are right, but I'll deal with it when the moment comes. For the moment, if it's possible, try to see if I can buy it."

"Yes, Harry."

At that moment the other goblin arrived with a sack of coins, a piece of parchment, and a quill. He handed the sack to Harry, and asked him to count them, and to sign the momentary loan. He did as asked, and counted a total of a 100 galleons, and then signed the parchment, which the goblin took while thanking Harry in a business like manner. He then turned to Griphook.

"Well. I'll wait for your letter then?" Harry asked Griphook.

"Yes, Harry. I'll get back with you as soon as I have some information."

"Good, then. Thanks. Bye." he said while shaking Griphook's hand.

"Good bye, Mr. Potter. Eh. Harry." finished Griphook, while Harry smiled, turned and left Gringotts.

He went to Scribbulus Everchanging Inks, and bought a pensive for 5 galleons and 7 sickles, which came with instructions on how to use it, and the recipe for the Memoratus potion, which he decided to buy, so that he could avoid having to make it. He then exited the store and headed towards Florean Fortescue to find Ginny and Hermione.

"Harry!" said Ginny a little loudly, and jump from her seat to hug Harry. "How did it go?"

"I couldn't get inside. They are moving the contents of the other two vaults, towards the one I'll be having. But they gave me a momentary loan so that I could buy the pensive."

"Hmm. Well. At least you got the money."

"Yeah, the thing is that I could have bought the pensive with what I had on me. I should have gone to the store first to ask. I thought it was expensive, because the only pensive I've seen is the one Dumbledore used. Well. It's done, so no point complaining. How's the ice cream?" asked Harry

"Delicious, Harry. If you want one, I could accompany you with another." answered Hermione giggling.

"No, thanks Hermione. Have you seen Florean?" asked Harry.

"No. A girl is managing it. I think she's her daughter. But I didn't want to ask. Do you want to go in and ask her.?"

"Probably, but some other time. If its OK with you, I'd like to check the memories."

"Sure. Let's go. It's time for lunch anyway." said Hermione.

"Are you hungry, or Ron's appetite is getting a hang on you too?" asked Ginny, and the three of them laughed and headed away.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note:**

- Special thanks to HyperLily for correcting the chapter.

* * *

**Chapter Two**

**The Burrow**

**June 18, 1998**

Harry had spent almost all of Friday after returning from Diagon Alley to view the memories handed to him by Griphook. He had at last gotten to know his Grand Father, and best of all gotten to watch his Mum and Dad as they explained everything about his estates. He now had the visual images required to make a successful apparition, but seeing his parents had been the most important part of it to him. He watched and watched, and during the weekend he even had shown the memories to Ginny, Ron, and Hermione. But as Sunday ended, he started thinking with his extensive amount of free time due to his energy condition, about what to do with the things he had. He now knew that his parents had lived by the rents he now had from the premises he owned near Diagon Alley, but those were just four of the nine he had.

His biggest estate, as was seen in his Grand Father's memory, was a big beautiful place full of trees, and a small structure on top of a hill. Then there was his Grand Father's house in London, and the other big property near Godric's Hollow, which were both very nice. But Grimmauld Place, and his Parents house in Godric's Hollow were on the other side of the equation. One was dark, and the other considerably damaged. He knew this last because of what he saw with Hermione during his visit there, and not from the memory.

Deciding where he would live was not a simple task, and once that decision was taken, the question became what to do with the others. He decided that he would have to visit them in order to make a more informed decision.

On Monday he sent a letter with Ron to the Ministry of Magic requesting to be tested for apparition. They received an answer the same day that they could present themselves on Tuesday which they did. Even though Ron arrived a little nervous to the test, the two of them received their apparition licenses, so Harry was now able to visit his estates at will. Hermione who already had her license left to visit her parents, whom with the help of the Ministry had been brought back from Australia. Ron went to work with George, so Harry asked Ginny if she wanted to come with him to get to know his estates, which she immediately accepted.

Wednesday the 18th arrived. They finished breakfast. Watched as Ron left the burrow via floo powder towards WWW. They said their good byes to Mrs. and Mr. Weasley, and went outside to side-along apparate.

Harry and Ginny apparated on a thin stone road. The sign on the street read: Ennismore Gardens Mews. They walked until they saw a house appear between number 23 and 21.

"Harry, does the house have a Fidelius charm?" asked Ginny.

"Eh? Oh, no. Remember that my Grand Father said it was the same protection used on the entrance of the Leaky Cauldron from Charing Cross Road. Only Wizards can see it." answered Harry in awe of what he was seeing. "This house is definitely better than the one in Grimmauld Place. At least from the outside."

"Yes, it is." answered Ginny with big rounded eyes.

The front of the house was beautiful. It had a cast iron fence with a double cast iron door in the middle. Beyond the bars there was a small garden that lead to the front of the house itself.

Harry touched the front door nob, and the house or door seemed to recognized its new owner as it unlocked itself. He and Ginny passed through, and reached the small garden, and through it to the front door of the house. It did the same to Harry's touch. They went inside, and it seamed that the house was completely furnished. There was a reception hall welcoming them. It had four doors besides the main one and a stair case. The left door lead to a living room. The right door to a dining room. There was a door in front of them that lead to a big garden, and another door at the right wall at the other side of the dining room that lead to the kitchen. Below the staircase which was set on the left wall there was a small bathroom.

On the second floor, there was a family room flanked by a total of four rooms, two to each side. There was a bathroom in between both rooms on each side, but which were accessible only from inside the rooms. On the landing of the staircase there was a door that led to a wide balcony on the side of the inner garden. Harry and Ginny walked to the cast iron railings, and stood in awe of the garden. It was big, but it was overgrown as well as the small one in front of the house.

"With proper care it will be beautiful." said Ginny.

"Yeah, I know. I love this place." said Harry while hugging Ginny. "And I'll love it better with you in it." he added smiling.

Ginny blushed, and smiled widely, and joked saying. "I'll better be in it, Mr. Potter." She reached, and gave him a kiss.

They spent some time exploring the house and the big garden, and left half an hour later, and apparated towards Godric's Hollow. They arrived near his parents house. It was smaller than his Grandparents house in London, but it looked nice except for the damaged done to it by Voldemort. The house opened to him when it recognized his touch. They explored it the same way as the one before, but it was definitely smaller, and it didn't take much time for them to cover it all.

The upper floor had a lot of weather damage as it has suffered from being open to the elements. Wind had thrown things all over, and the damaged done by the Avada Kedavra curse was extensive. It didn't destroy only the room that used to be Harry's, but also the one at its side which Harry guessed was his parents. Harry's face might have shown memories brewing in his mind, as Ginny approached him and hugged him close. They didn't say a thing, but it was clear for both of them, that this wasn't going to be Harry's choice for a house.

They left, and apparated to his Grand Parents 88 acres property. The estate was in front of the main road that exited Godric's Hollow, and it was just a few miles to the west from the small town. The terrain was big and square. It had almost 600 meters per side, and was fenced by an overgrown three meter high bush that went all around the terrain. In the middle of the side facing the road was the house. It was almost a replica of the London house with the difference that the external door was made of solid metal instead of a cast iron fence. It had a small garden between the outer and inner doors, and the big garden in the London house was replace by one that surrounded the entire house. Beyond it, the garden was naturally extended by lines and lines of olive trees.

If London Ennismore house was beautiful, this one was even better. For Harry the decision was now easy. It was either this house or the one in London. He still had to visit the estate he inherited from Ignotus, but that one didn't have a house.

"So? It's this one right?" asked Ginny.

"Why do you say so?" asked Harry in return.

"Well, First: I'm a witch, and Second: I know that face." answered Ginny.

"What face?" asked Harry.

"The same face you have when you look at me." answered Ginny seriously.

"Oh, yeah? And what face is that."

"The one you have when you are unmistakably, absolutely, and completely lost in love." answered Ginny chuckling.

"Oh, you are so sure of that, Eh?

"Positive."

"Why?"

"Because regretfully it was the same face you had when you saw Cho Chang."

Harry blushed, but kept his composure. "What? You are now suggesting that I was in loved with Cho?"

"Oh! No Mr. Potter. I would never suggest such a thing." answered Ginny seriously. "I could only certify it." She added with a mischievous grin.

Harry chuckled, and said. "OK, you got me." He then turned to see the house, the garden, and the olive trees, and added. "You are unmistakably, absolutely, and completely right. I'm unmistakably, absolutely, and completely lost in love with this house.

Ginny hugged him and grinned. "Me too. Especially the trees, and all this green."

"I think I've made a choice. But what am I going to do with the other houses?" asked Harry.

"You should asked Griphook. He told you that if you needed some advice to ask him." answered Ginny.

"Yeah. I guess there's no harm in asking. We should go talk to him."

"We still have one more to go, remember? And its getting late. We should go see this last one, and go back for lunch. We can visit Griphook in the afternoon, or tomorrow." added Ginny.

"You are right, but I still want to do this before lunch. Lets take a quick look at Ignotus used-to-be estate, and make a visit to Gringotts before returning to the burrow. We should be back in time for lunch."

"What's the rush, Harry?" asked Ginny.

"Sorry Gin. It's that I don't get to sleep too much, and I don't want to have this on my mind all night. I would prefer to get it done now if you don't mind." answered Harry.

"Sure." She shrugged. "Lets get going then." she added grabbing Harry's hand so that he could side-along apparate her.

They disappeared in a bang, and reappeared in another. They were in Crooklake Hill road, 2 km South West of Newton St. Cyres. There was no sign with the name, but he knew that form his Grandfather's memory. They were in a pronounced curve were the entrance to the terrain was in. It looked abandoned, but beautiful. The other side of the road had grasslands, but this estate was a very big forest. They walked a few hundred meters through a trail, and they arrived at a clearing which was at the base of a hill. On top of it, and a little more than a hundred meters from them was a small structure. They walked towards it.

"It's a nice place Harry. Not much to see but trees for the moment. But I could bet that it would be even nicer than the olives estate, if it had the same house and gardens." said Ginny.

"Probably..." said Harry out of himself. He was feeling something strange. It was like if he was being hit by flashes or waves of energy. It was barely perceptible, and it seemed that only for him, as Ginny walked without noticing. He stopped.

Ginny walked a few steps ahead, and then stopped too and turned. "What is it, Harry?"

Harry remained quiet for a moment, as if in a trance, but he answered. "You can't feel it?"

"Feel what, Harry?"

"The energy. A lot of energy." answered Harry. He had become more sensitive to outside influence, as he had spent a lot of time feeling the flow of energy through his body. He could definitely identify this as energy, and it was a huge flow of it, but it came in bursts, and after that in waves. He grabbed Ginny's hand and walked ahead towards the small structure at the top of the hill, but he stopped again, as the energy intensified."

"Harry? What is it? What energy?"

"I don't know Gin. But the closer we get to that structure the stronger it gets." Harry answered, and then turned his head towards his left pant pocket, as he felt something vibrate inside it. He slowly put his left hand inside, and immediately felt the elder wand vibrate. He grabbed it, and felt the wand vibrate again. It did the same every time the burst of energy was felt. The wand felt as if it was going to explode, so he took it out, and examined it.

Another burst, and the wand clearly vibrated again.

"You saw that?" asked Harry.

"Yes..." answered Ginny with her mouth open, and her eyes wide.

Out of curiosity, Harry took his own wand out of his right pocket, and held both of them in front of him. Another burst, and only the elder wand vibrated. 'What's going on' he thought. 'Is this the place you were created?'

"Why is only the elder wand vibrating?" said Ginny while taking her wand out, and nothing happened to it when the elder wand vibrated again.

"I don't know Gin. I think it has something to do that this is probably the place this wand was created, but it's only a guess."

"You are telling me this is the place the Hallows were created?" asked Ginny.

"Well, This land belong to Ignotus, so it's a possibility." answered Harry.

"What about your cloak, Harry? Is it also vibrating?" asked Ginny.

"That's a good question, and would make our guess a stronger one." said Harry while taking the invisibility cloak out of his pouch.

The cloak purred out of the pouch, and Harry and Ginny could see it shimmer from the inside every time he felt the burst and the elder wand vibrated. He pulled the cloak, and covered them both. Everything changed. They were no longer seeing the green hill with a structure on top. They were now seeing all of that, but also what looked like an energy vortex, a very powerful energy vortex. It swirled out of the Earth exactly were the structure stood.

The vortex moved like a fixed tornado, but it went upwards growing in width, and height for as long as their eyes could see. There were lightning type flashes in its interior that burst out of the vortex, and struck the land in front of them in a consistent pattern. Every time this happen, it generated waves of energy that flowed all around them. It was these waves what Harry was feeling, and what was making the elder wand vibrate and the cloak shimmer.

Harry started moving forward towards the vortex and structure when Ginny asked. "Should we be going towards that thing, Harry?"

"Don't you want to see what's inside that structure. We are only able to see this because we have the cloak, and my Grand Father never mentioned there was anything to worry about this place." answered Harry.

"I saw that memory too Harry, and he did mention that he almost never came here. I'm only saying that we should at least find out what's this all about before going inside that thing. You are always this brave, Harry, but you should stop to think sometimes. You should at least ask yourself what you are getting into." said Ginny while holding Harry's arm, and pulling him backwards.

"Hmm. OK." he sighed in frustration. "You are probably right. I'll ask Hermione if she knows something about this. If not, I'll go to Flourish and Blots, and see if I can find something there. But if I don't, I'll get back here and find out the direct way." stated Harry.

"And I'll come back with you, but first we'll try to find out any other way we can. Deal?" asked Ginny.

"OK, deal." answered Harry smiling and nodding. "Lets go then. We still have time to visit Gringotts."

"Lead the way."

**Gringotts Wizarding Bank**

**Meeting room**

**A few minutes later ...**

Harry and Ginny were sitting waiting in the same meeting room Griphook presented Harry with his inheritance, when the goblin arrived.

"Harry," said Griphook bowing. He then turned to Ginny. "Mrs. Weasley. It's good to see you both again. What may I do for you?"

"Hi, Griphook. I checked the memories, and went to visit the houses and estates today with Ginny. I was wondering if you could help me with them.?"

"Sure. Mr..., Eh Harry. In what way may I be of assistance?" asked Griphook.

"Well, you know that I have four business premises rented in Diagon Alley. I was wondering if something similar can be done with the houses? I think, I have decided which one of them to use as my house, so I thought that you could help me with the rest?" answered Harry.

"Of course, Harry. I don't see a problem."

"I know nothing about contracts and that kind of stuff. Could you help me with that? Also, could you tell me where to announce the houses for rent?" asked Harry.

"I can do more than that. I can handle everything, as I have done for your family for years. It is my job, and part of what Gringotts charges for the service I receive as a commission. So, please don't feel that this is only help from a friend. It is my job and responsibility." answered Griphook.

"Oh. Good. I didn't know that. So? Eh... How do we proceed?" asked Harry again.

"Well, some of your houses will require some maintenance before they are suitable for being rented, but apart from that, I don't think there will be a problem. The Ministry allocate houses for some of his high ranking officials, but mostly they are assigned to foreigners who work for the Ministry on special projects.. I believe that at least the two houses you have in London are more than suitable for being rented to the Ministry, and they pay far better than anybody else." answered Griphook.

"Good. Is there something I could do with the house in Godric's Hollow. I would definitely not want to live there. There are too many things...," added Harry looking at the table. "...memories." he added raising his head and looked at Griphook.

"I understand, Harry. I'll see what I can do." said Griphook.

"Thanks. Is there someone who could help me with the olives? I don't think I'll have time to manage that, and while I'll be adding protections to that house, I'd like people I can trust to manage them." asked Harry.

"Sure, I don't see a problem."answered Griphook and then asked. "Do you want something done with the property at Newton St. Cyres? That one has never been worked, but I'm sure there could be people interested in working it for you."

"Eh. No. I think I'll leave that alone for the moment. I have too many things on my mind, and wouldn't want to add another."

"OK, I understand. Please come back Friday morning. I should have sorted things out by then." said Griphook.

"Thanks, Griphook. I'll see you on Friday." finished Harry while standing and shaking Griphook's hand.

They stepped outside of Gringotts and seeing that they still had time till lunch, Harry convinced Ginny to at least take an outside look to his properties in Diagon Alley. They walked until they reached the perpendicular street where they were situated. The business premises were relatively small. In contrast to the stores that were in Diagon Alley, and which carried magical things of every sort, the ones he had rented dealt mostly with food stuff. The four properties where located one after the other. They were mostly of the same size, and Harry guessed that the difference in price was made by the proximity to Diagon Alley, as the most expensive was neared to that street, while the least one was farther away from it.

The owner of the store called: 'Cibus Regium', seemed to rent all of his properties, and one more adjacent to them closer to Diagon Alley. He had connected them in a way that allowed people to move as if it was a single business premise. The store was big and full of people. Harry could see through the windows that food of every type was made available in its shelves.

Ginny was open-mouth before she said. "You know that Mum buys all the food we eat here, right?"

"Really?" asked Harry, and he started to laugh. "Its good to know that Ron's appetite has been paying my rent all these years." added Harry, and they both started laughing while walking away. "Remind me to encourage him to eat more." added Harry chuckling.

Ginny was smiling nodding his head. "I will, but just wait till Mum finds out that all her savings had ended up in your vault."

Harry's smile vanished. "Wait, wait. There are many people buying there. I'm sure her spendings are just a small part of what that store earns..."

"Yeah, yeah." said Ginny faking not listening.

"... and I'm sure that the rent is a small part of its expenses..."

"Yeah, yeah." added Ginny concealing a smile.

"... The owner has to buy all that food you know?..."

"Yeah, yeah. Explain that to my Mum." said Ginny chuckling.

"You wouldn't tell her. Would you?" asked Harry.

"Oh! No, Harry. I would never do that." answered Ginny convincingly.

Harry just looked at her sideways not knowing if she was being true.

Several minutes later they arrived at the Burrow in time for lunch. They sat with Mrs. Weasley, and started eating. Ginny looked at Harry, and with a mischievous grin said. "Mum, did you know that Cibus Regium rents …"

**Gringotts Wizarding Bank**

**Meeting room**

**June 20, 1998**

Harry received a letter on Thursday from Griphook confirming his meeting on Friday, and asked Harry to reserve the entire morning for him, as there were things they needed to discuss with several people. He told Ginny to wait for him in the Burrow as he didn't know how much time it will take, and didn't want her to be bored. She accepted without a complaint.

He arrived early at Gringotts, and was received by Griphook in the main hall. The two of them walked towards the meeting room, and arrived there shortly.

Griphook, made its usual chair climbing odyssey, while Harry sat beside him.

"OK, Harry. I have four proposals for you to consider. Shall we start?" asked Griphook.

"Yes, please." answered Harry.

"Good. First, there is the proposal from the ministry to rent both houses in London. They are offering 1,016 Galleons per month for the one in Ennismore Gardens Mews, and 648 Galleons for the one in Grimmauld Place. If you accept, they ask that you deliver the houses empty and without any protections, as they will handle that for themselves. Any repairs required by the houses will be deducted from the initial rents, but any subsequent repairs will run on Ministry's account. Do you want me to accept that proposal?"

"Hmm. Yes, I suppose."

"If you are not sure, we can look for other offers, but I don't believe there will be any that matches the one from the Ministry." added Griphook.

"Oh. No. It's OK. It's just that I was wondering where I'll put all that stuff. The house I'm moving has all the furniture I require, but I guess I'll have to put things there until I find out what I'll do with them." said Harry.

"There is space in your vault if you need to, but I'll arrange with the Ministry to send someone with you to select stuff that could be helpful for them. That way you won't need to move everything out."

"Yes, that's a good idea. Thanks." added Harry.

"OK. I'll arrange for that, and I'll get back to you. For the moment you should remove the protections on Grimmauld Place, as it is unplottable. The Ministry handles its own protection."

"Of course. I'll do that."

"The second proposal is also from the Ministry. In this case from the Department of Magical Culture and Education. They seek to rent your house in Godric's Hollow. They want to have it as an historical monument, and museum of sorts. They are offering 432 Galleons per month." said Griphook.

"Museum of sorts?" asked Harry.

"Or sort of a museum." answered Griphook with what looked like a smile.

"Why would they want to make it a museum?" asked Harry.

"You may not think much of yourself, or of what you have done, but I can guarantee you that the great majority of wizards consider you and your achievements well beyond of what they could ever be or do. I'm afraid that there are many people with enough curiosity to try an learn everything about you." answered Griphook.

Harry sighed. "I'm not going to have people messing around that house. I won't allow for morbid curiosity. I'm afraid I'm not interested in their proposal."

"I knew you were going to say something like that. I told them that you would most probably not like the idea of people entering that house. Their reasoning is that a museum will allow them income to maintain the property and pay for the rent, as their budget is relatively low. They also said that if you would not accept their proposal, that they are willing to pay half that amount to keep the house as an historical monument, and add a memorial outside of it. I'm sure that if you repair the house, there will be many people interested in renting it for a good price. A price that I guess will be even better than the 540 Galleons they offered. What would you want me to do?" asked Griphook.

"They'll pay 216 Galleon to keep the house as it is, without anyone entering it?" asked Harry.

"Yes, but as I said, I think you could earn more money by repairing and renting it to another person." answered Griphook.

"I know, but I think I'll prefer to keep it as it is for the moment. I have to come to terms with myself before deciding what to do with that house. I think I'll take the 216 Galleon's they offer." added Harry.

"Good. I'll arrange for it to happen." finished Griphook, and then said. "The third proposal is for olive oil production, and comes from one of the suppliers of Cibus Regium. They are willing to manage olive production from your trees and then convert them into oil. They are willing to pay you 15 Knuts per liter produced, and say that you could earn more than 2000 Galleons per year. That's not even 200 Galleons per month, and is the reason your father didn't consider this, but it's an extra income for you, and you wouldn't have to worry about anything. You could earn a lot more if you manage it, but this way, while its not much, it's still something. Do you want me to accept it?"

"I don't know. I would like a little privacy. Is there going to be a lot of people working there?" asked Harry.

"Only one wizard during the year, and several short term contracts during harvest time." answered Griphook.

"Am I allowed a vote on the wizard hired?"

"I don't see a problem with that."

"If they accept that condition, then OK. Let's try it."

"Good." said Griphook bowing slightly. "The last proposal is from the owner of the business premises being rented by Weasley Wizarding Wheezes. He is willing to sell the premises at 543,750 Galleons ..."

"What!" shouted Harry. "Is he crazy? More than 500,000 Galleons?"

Griphook smiled to Harry's reaction, and said. "He's actually giving it on price. He's not trying to play you at it. Mr. Weasley rents it at 4,350 Galleons per month. It's standard for rents to be .8 percent of the total value."

Harry had a stupefied face, and it took some time for him to grasp what Griphook was saying. "Yeah, but more than half a million Galleons? The four properties I have near Diagon Alley combined don't make even half of that."

"That's because they are not in Diagon Alley, and because the four of them while bigger in area, are only one level in height. The one being rented by Mr. Weasley has several levels, and its on a corner of Diagon Alley. It is one of the most expensive premises there is. If you are not convinced about doing this, we can still back down from the offer." said Griphook.

"No." he sighed. "I guess its better to help George, than to have that money sitting in my vault."

"You plan to sell it to him, right?" asked Griphook.

"Yeah. I haven't given it much thought, but I could stop charging rent, and allow him to save until he is able to pay the lot, or to keep charging him for the rent, and use that money as a down payment for buying the premises, but yes, I'll sell it to him."

"Well then, there is no loss. You'll just be loaning your money, and having it invested in a estate is almost as secure as having your money in Gringotts."

Harry shrugged and said. "Yeah, I suppose."

"Well then, I'll prepare all the documents, and arrange for all parties to be here for contract signing on Tuesday. Is there any thing you need?" asked Griphook.

"Yeah, I'd like to go to my vault. I need to make a withdrawal." answered Harry.

"Sure, Harry. You have your key?"

"Yes, here." answered Harry touching his pouch.

"OK. Lets go then."

The two of them made it to the carts, and started their travel through the mazes of tracks. Harry could see that the damage done by the Dragon during his escape had already been repaired, or could not be seen. They went deeper and deeper until the cart stopped in front of a vault door. It seemed to Harry that they were not as deep as they had gone to enter Bellatrix's vault, but that they were pretty close. The vault door was different. It was bigger than the one he used to have, and there was more space between the other vaults.

"This door has a different lock than the one you had, Harry. It won't open unless a goblin touches the door while you use your key." said Griphook making a sign for Harry to use his key.

Harry placed the key into the key-hole while Griphook touched the door. He waited for an encouragement from Griphook to turn the key, and once he received a nod from him, he did. The door opened, and Harry's mouth fell to the ground. The amount of golden coins piled in several mounds was shocking. He had seen a lot before in his previous vault, but this one had nearly four times that number. The mounds were also stack in an orderly manner, and had a smaller amount of coins than on vault 687, but the number of mounds made it look impressive.

Surprisingly there was nothing else. Harry had suspected to see chairs, furniture, statues, jewels, like he did in Bellatrix's vault, but there were only coins. A lot of them, but only coins.

Harry's confused face prompted Griphook to ask. "Is there something wrong, Harry?"

"Eh? Oh! no. Its just that I thought there was going to be other things in here too. I guess I was expecting to see piles of furniture stacked high like in Bellatrix's vault." answered Harry.

"Your Great Grand Father and the ones before him used to have a lot of things here, that's why you have this bigger and more secure vault. But your Grand Father was a very practical wizard. Things he didn't need, he either sold or gave them away to wizards in need. You seem to have inherited much of his personality..." he paused and added. "Even if you didn't know him."

"Hmm." replied Harry raising his eye brows. He took his wand away and started levitating and summoning Galleons into his pouch. He took 3,000. "OK. I'm ready."

"Good. Lets return to the cart." said Griphook.

The two of them returned to the bank, and Harry left Gringotts and headed for Cibus Regium.

Upon entering the store, an old man approached him saying. "Mr. Potter. How good to see you. Have you come to check on your premises?"

"Eh?" was the only thing Harry could answer before the charismatic old man started talking again.

"I'm sorry. Where are my manners? I'm Malcom Fittleworth. I own Cibus Regium. There is my wife Irene, and my daughter Amelia." Said Malcom pointing at two witches attending some customers. "You already know my daughter from Hogwarts I presume?"

"Eh? Oh!, yes Sir. She is in Hufflepuff." replied Harry.

"Indeed she is, but please call me Malcom. May I call you Harry?"

"I will, Sir... I mean Malcom, and yes you can call me Harry."

Malcolm chuckled. "Now, tell me Harry. What can I do for you. I hope you haven't come to tell me to pack my things a leave." he added joking.

"Oh, no Sir..."

"Malcom, Harry, please."

"Sorry. No. I just came to ask if you knew Mrs. Weasley." said Harry.

"Molly Weasley?" asked Malcom.

"Yes."

"Of course I know her. She is one of my best customers. With the amount of children she has, and the appetite they carry, it's no wonder why."

"Good. Well... Eh... I wanted to ask you a favor."

"Sure, my boy. Please, tell me."

"I was wondering if you could charge me for everything she purchases here?" asked Harry.

"And she knows this?" asked Malcom in return

"Hmm... No. I intend to tell her, but I know it will be hard to convince her to accept money from me. I'm living with them, and I don't want to be a burden, at least not in respect of expenses, that's why I was wondering if I could pay for her purchases in advance."

"My dear boy," said Malcom patting Harry's shoulder. "I would love to be able to help you with that, but I'm afraid I can't. First, even though you will be helping Molly, I would be breaking her trust if I force her into something she is not willing to. Second, If she feels uncomfortable with you paying off her bills, I know I would, she would end up going to buy things somewhere else. You see my boy," he added placing his hands on Harry's shoulders. "sometimes good intentions have a way of biting your hand. It's better that you allow people you are willing to help to decide if they want that help. If not, then you must learn to respect their decisions, even if it leaves you in an uncomfortable situation." He sighed. "I would recommend for you to convince Molly in accepting your help. I wouldn't force her into it."

"I..." Harry sighed. "I guess you are right." and Harry kept on thinking, especially of what he was about to do with George. '_Would he feel uncomfortable too, if I buy the premises for him?'_

"Is there something wrong, Harry." asked Malcom.

"Eh? Oh, no. Just thinking, that's all."

Malcom straightened up, and looked at him with a piercing look. "The way I see it, Harry. You are afraid of facing her." he smiled. "There is no shame in helping those in need, but you must do things the right way, or don't do them at all. Sit with her. Talk to her. Tell her your feelings on the matter, and try to reach a compromise that would suit you both." He turned to see his wife, Irene. "I learned that with her, Harry. The most important thing in every type of relationship is communication. You must have the will to listen and understand the other person's point of view, you must listen to your heart to understand your own point of view, and from there, you must use your logic to find a solution that will further the relationship. If you can't find a mutual agreement, Harry. Then you've failed on at least one of the points I mentioned. There is always a solution to any problem."

Harry looked at him in awe of what he was hearing, "Thanks Mr. Fiter... Eh..."

"Fittleworth, but please call me Malcom. Now, Harry. Is there something else I can do for you?"

"Eh... No. I guess I'll get going now. Thanks a lot Malcom."

"Come back any time you want, Harry."

Harry was leaving, but turned to add one more thing. "Oh! Thanks by the way for renting the place all these years. Thanks to you I have money." he smiled sheepishly.

Malcom laughed, "Its good to be of service to my best friend's grandchild."

Harry stood still in shock of knowing that Malcom knew his Grandfather, he should have known. He was about to ask about him but Malcom spoke first.

"Go away!. Shoo shoo." he said with a broad smile, and flapping his hands "We'll talk about it another time. You are on a mission, my boy. Go."

Harry smiled widely, and thanked him again before leaving.

**Weasley Wizarding Wheezes**

**A few minutes later...**

"Hey! Harry. Here."

Harry turned around and saw Ron calling for him. He was placing some merchandise on some shelves in the second floor.

Harry went up the stairs, and was approaching Ron, when he said. "Hey! Mate. What are you doing here?"

"I was passing by. I was in Gringotts. I thought I'd say hello. Where is George?"

"In his roomboratory." answered Ron.

"Roomboratory?" asked Harry with a quizzical look.

"Yeah. That's how I call it. It's where he stays when he's not at the Burrow, and is also his laboratory, so roomboratory. Nice, Right?"

"Yeah, very clever." replied Harry slightly shaking his head, and at that time he felt someone watching him. He turned, and three small girls looked at them nervously and undecided, but one of them took a deep breath and started to approach them. Harry tensed a little.

"Relax." said Ron. "We are famous remember. Happens all the time here."

The girl followed by her two friends approached Harry and asked him for his autograph, handing him a quill and a small diary.

"I... I don't know..." Harry started saying.

"Please?" the girl added with a pleading tone.

"Oh! OK. The thing is that I don't know what to write." replied Harry grabbing the quill and diary.

"Your name is alright." said the girl smiling, and then added excited. "You know, we supported you during the war. We wanted to stay and fight at your side, but we were not allowed. We were first years. They took us away from Hogwarts through the tunnels, but we wanted to."

Harry smiled, "Thanks. You are brave, you know? Are you Gryffindor?"

Her chest filled with pride. "Yes. I am. Emma too. " she said pointing to one of the other girls. "Hannah is Ravenclaw." she added of the other one.

"And your name is?"

"Katherine."

"OK, then." he said, and then wrote:

_To Katherine, _

_Who stood in light when we faced darkness._

_Your friend, _

_Harry Potter_

Harry handed the quill and the small diary with the very unimaginative message back to Katherine who read it. Her eyes watered, and she looked at Harry with a sheepish grin, and said. "Thanks, Harry." she placed and held the diary close to her chest and added. "Thanks a lot". For Harry it had been the only thing that got into his mind, but for Katherine seemed to be a message sent by God himself.

The two other girls quickly asked Harry for the same, and one by one asked Ron to add a note too, and he just couldn't hide his prideful smile while obliging.

The girls left, Ron returned to his duties, and Harry went upstairs to talk to George. He knocked on his Roomboratory's door, and heard George reply from inside. "It's open."

Harry pushed the door open, and saw George sitting in front of an empty table looking transfixed at it. "Hi, George."

George looked up, and his face lit up when he saw Harry. "Hey, Harry. What are you doing here? If you have come to buy a love potion to use on Ginny, you know I can't do that." he said with a serious face, but then added with mischievous grin. "You can take them for free. You know I won't charge you."

Harry smiled and chuckled. "No. Just to talk. Do you have time?"

"For you, every second you need." he answered but then sighed. "I should be working on something new, but since Fred ..." he paused for a moment considering his words. "... left us, I seem to have lost inspiration, or at least my normal imagination to create new stuff." he shook his head in a funny way to release his stupor and added. "But tell me Harry. What did you want to talk about?"

Harry sat in one of the sofas, and George followed him on the big one. "Well, I just went to Cibus Regium, and asked Mr. Fittleworth if I could pay for your Mum's expenses..."

"Ooh! Harry" interrupted George with a whisper. "I don't think Mum will like that."

"Yeah, that's what Mr. Fittleworth told me." and he continued to recount his entire talk with him.

After a couple of minutes hearing Harry's story, George said. "I understand your concern of being a burden to my family's economy, but you must understand that having all of us there, is what makes Mum feels alive. I some times feel a little depressed and stay here, but I make the effort every day to be at the Burrow, because I know how important it is for her that we are there. But I do agree with Mr. Fittleworth. You should talk to her and express your feelings about this, and I think Mr. Fittleworth's idea of reaching an agreement together is better than forcing one to each other." he sighed. "Well, at least its what I think Mum will like. I would."

Harry listened intently to what George was saying, and he couldn't stop thinking how much he had changed since Fred died. He still enjoyed what he did, but he also seemed to be much more mature than the playful joking and mischievous kid he knew.

"Well, as a matter of fact that's what I was going to do..., I'm going to do." Harry rectified. "But the thing is that that's not all." Harry bit his lips. "Paying for your Mums expenses was the second unsolicited good intentioned..." he paused to search for the correct word. "transgression I was about to make."

"And the first?" asked George with a quizzical look on his face.

"I...," Harri sighed. "I bought this place so that you don't have to pay rent..."

"You did WHAT?" asked George perplexed.

"Well, Eh... I haven't paid for it yet, but I told Griphook to accept the proposal. I should be signing it on Tuesday..."

"No. You are not. I won't accept that. This place cost more than half a million galleons, Harry. I won't accept that. You have already helped me with your Tri-Wizard's earnings, I can't, and I won't accept you spending that amount so that I don't pay rent."

"It's not that. I don't intend to lose that money George..."

"No, Harry, and that's final."

"Just hear me out a second." said Harry raising up his hand, and George calmed down a little. "I have that kind of money in my vault. I don't plan on using it, but I don't have the intention of losing it either. I just thought that I could buy this place, and then you can save up without having to pay rent to buy it from me in the future. See it as a loan without interest."

"If you don't plan on using that kind of money, then you definitely need advice, because if you at least use it to buy a place like this you could be increasing your earnings by more than 4000 Galleons worth of rent per month. But that's not the point, Harry. The point is that even if you are not willing to use that money, the risk involved is too high for me to accept. If something happens to this store it could be years, even more than a decade that I'll be able to pay you for it." he sighed but smiled. "Look, Harry. I really appreciate your offer, but I won't accept it unless you accept a counter proposal."

Harry's eyes widened, "A counter proposal?"

"Yes, Harry." George's face turn serious. "I have been seeking a way to buy this place, and if you are willing to help me, I won't reject that, but I will definitely reject your actual conditions." he flicked his wand muttering something, and a drawer opened on one side of the room and a piece of parchment flew into George's hand. "This, Harry," said George pointing at the parchment "is the current valuation of Wheezes as a Company. Taking into account only its earnings, it is valued at 48,000 Galleons, but considering what I'm paying in rent, Gringotts is willing a loan of 144,000 Galleons, and as you know that's no where near to what I need. They can give me the total, but due to the fact that I'm unable to back it up in earnings, the interests they charge will make the purpose of buying this store moot, as the amount of interests to be paid will be huge."

"The other option is to save for a down payment, and then get the 144,000. But to save for the other part it will take me up to 20 years if things keep as they are. I also considered selling part of the business to finance the purchase, but even if the buyer would consider the amount paid in rent as earnings, I will have to sell the entire company three times over to get the money needed."

"So? What do you propose?" asked Harry.

"You are risking money, Harry. A lot of it. I do know that it doesn't burn your hands, but it's still a lot. So... my proposal would be, for you becoming a partner in Wheezes …"

"Oooh! no no no no no. I wouldn't have a clue of what to do, and I really don't have time for this. I do want to be an Auror, George. Please take it as a loan, and take any time you need to pay me back ..." interrupted Harry.

"I'm sorry, Harry, but I can't. It's just too much. You asked me to hear you out a second, now it's your turn."

"OK, sorry." said Harry.

"I really want to buy this house, premises, store, whatever you want to call it. I really, really, really want you to help me, but I won't accept if I'm unable to give you something in return. It is a huge investment on your part, and even if you don't manage the store, which is great for me as I'll make all the decisions." added George laughing. "I do want to not only pay you back, but also to make you partner for the risk you are taking."

Harry raised his hand to stop him. "I know I said I won't interrupt, but are you saying you want to pay back what I lend you, but also to make me partner?"

"Yes... " answered George.

"No." snapped Harry

"Wait, wait." George chuckled. "It's not paying you all back, but part of it. Look, Harry. I know you have very little experience in business, but Bill lectured me and Fred on the matter thoroughly. So please hear me out."

"OK." replied Harry unconvinced.

"Wheezes is currently worth 48,000 without taking into account inventory. Once you buy the premises at lets say 500,000. It won't be worth 548,000, but 644,000 because we won't have to pay rent and our earnings will go up. What I propose is the following: I give you 50 percent of Wheezes worth lets say 322,000, and the difference to the 500,000 you paid, which is 178,000, Wheezes pays you back in a little more than one year. So lets say that in more less 18 months we'll be owners of Wheezes with premises, not paying rent, and with no debts, and able to expand faster into other markets."

"But you'll be giving me 50 percent George, I just wanted to help you. I don't want you to give away your business." stated Harry.

George chuckled again. "Look, Harry. It's as simple as this: If you lend me the money, even if I no longer have to pay the rent, I'll need at least eight years to pay you back. But If you accept 50 percent of the business, we'll be able to pay you back the difference in a little more than a year. That means that we'll be able to expand to other markets far faster, and in eight years I, with only 50 percent of the company will be earning a lot more than if I kept 100 percent. So you see, its actually more of a risk to you, because you'll have to trust if I'll be able to keep the company working and growing."

Harry shrugged and said. "I didn't see it that way."

"I think its better, Harry." George smiled. "At least for me."

"So... the premises will be own by wheezes, and not by you then?" asked Harry.

"Yes, and you'll own half of it." George stood up, and walked towards Harry. "So? What's going to be: Partner or Banker?" and he added in a very low voice making Harry laugh. "Partner, partner, partner, partner."

"If that's what you want. OK. Partner." and then added while George shook his hand wildly. "But I have to tell you that I have no intention on working here, unless its an emergency."

"Great, that way I don't have to deal with incompetents." replied George with a playful sneer.

"Heyyy..." Harry smiled.

"Just joking, Harry." George patted Harry's back.

They spent a couple more minutes talking before Harry stood to leave. He walked towards the door, and George said from his sofa. "I hope that your business with Mum goes well, and whatever she tells you, don't accept 50 percent of the family." Harry passed through the door smiling, and George added with a shout. "That's definitely not a good business."

Harry walked downstairs laughing. He said good bye to Ron, and left through the fireplace via floo powder.

**The Burrow**

**That same time …**

The fireplace burst into green flames, and Harry walked through dusting off his clothes. Ginny was with her Mum in the kitchen, and without any warning jumped into Harry almost knocking him down. She kissed him, and told him how much she missed him. They hugged, but Harry's nervousness with Molly's presence broke the embracement with an amused smile from Ginny.

"Hi, Mrs. Weasley."

"Hi, Dear. How was your morning?"

"Fine, thanks." he answered a little nervous. "Mrs. Weasley. I wanted to talk to you for a moment if you don't mind."

"I hope you are not in trouble." she replied a little worried.

"Oh! No. Not at all..."

"Well? What is it, Dear?"

"It's that I finally got to enter my vault, and I got some money. I wanted to help with the house expenses..."

"Thanks, Dear, but I can not accept that." stated Molly.

"Mrs. Weasley. I do want to help..."

"No, Harry. That is final. I really appreciate that you worry about it, but you are like a son to us, not a guest, and even less a tenant. So don't worry about it, Dear. We are doing just fine."

"Thanks Mrs. Weasley, but its not that. I really feel welcome here, but I do feel bad not contributing when there are mounds of galleons in my vault..." Mrs. Weasley was about to interrupt, but Harry raised a hand to be allowed to finish. "I knew you would not accept my help, and I went to Cibus Regium and asked Mr. Fittleworth if I could pay for your expenses..." Mrs Weasley looked at Harry with a bewildered face, and was about to burst into talk, but Harry raised his hand again. "He didn't accept."

"He better not, or I would have jinxed him on the spot."

Harry chuckled, "He seems to have figured that out." he soon erased his smile and went serious again. "But he didn't, because he didn't want to betray your trust. I had to endure a lengthy, but enlightening explanation about the importance of communication." Ginny chuckled at his side. "He said that I should speak my mind, and that if we are both open, we should be able to reach a solution that suits us both. The thing is that I really need to feel that I'm helping, and I know that you mean the best for me, and I really feel welcome. But I also feel that I'm a burden." Molly was about to interrupt at this so Harry added quickly. "I know that you don't feel that, but I do feel that way, and don't want to. Please, Mrs. Weasley, let me help."

"Please, Mum. It's important for Harry, and it will take a little burden from Dad." added Ginny.

Molly sighed. Harry's words had reached her, and she just couldn't say no to him after his plea. "Harry, Dear. Please understand that this is something that does not make me happy, but if you think its important for you to feel good in this house, I will accept." Harry was about to thank her, but it was now her turn to raise her hand. "What I won't do, is accept money from you young man." she added pointing her finger at him. "If you want to help that way, then you both can go to Cibus Regium to pick up the weekly groceries, and I will only accept that once per month. Don't think that you'll be paying for the food of this entire house every week. That won't happen. Take it or leave it." she stated with a serious tone, but then straightened up, and added with a smile. "Is that good for you, Dear."

Harry made a half smile and said. "Yes, Mrs. Weasley. It's good. Thanks. I would have prefered to make a stronger contribution, but if you are not willing to accept my help, I won't force the matter. I would have liked to take some pressure out off you and Mr. Weasley, so that you can both feel a little relief, at least from an economic point of view..."

"Harry, Dear." Molly interrupted him. "It has never been that important to us. You may see us grumble in complaint of how things have gotten more expensive, but we have always been happy, and always will as long as we are together, because the only thing that really matters to us is our family, and you are part of it." she made a motherly smile, and added. "Don't worry about it, and if this family ever needs your help, I know you are there for us, and I will never hesitate to ask for your help if we are in need. But in the meantime, just be your self. You are still young, and there are more important things for you to worry about."

Harry nodded with an emotional smile, and said. "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley. I think... I think I needed to hear that. Please don't forget what you just said. I will always be there for you, and this family... my family." Ginny kissed him on the cheek.

Molly grabbed Harry's hands across the table and said holding back tears. "I'll never forget, Dear. I will never forget."

**Gringotts Wizarding Bank**

**Meeting room**

**June 24, 1998**

It was Tuesday. Harry had spent most of the morning with a representative from the Ministry. He had shown him both houses to be rented, and had agreed to keep the furniture as they were. They were going to fix anything that needed fixing, and then would tell Harry what things had to go. The representative had been impressed by his Grandfather's house, and said that it would most likely stay as it is, but was a little taken aback by the state of Grimmauld Place. He had said that while the furniture was of good quality, they were going to wait after fixing it to decide if they will keep them or not. If not, he said that they'll be arranging with Gringotts to ship the furniture to Harry's Vault.

He later went to see George and agreed on a meeting with the owner of the premises used by Wheezes. They both went to Gringotts, and made the necessary paper work to make Harry half owner of the store, while they waited for their appointment.

"So? This means that I'm your partner, right?" asked Harry.

"Yes, Harry. Fifty, fifty." answered George with a yawn. They were both bored of waiting.

"So, even if I don't pay for the premises, I'm still owner, right?" Harry added with a mischievous smile. "I can buy the premises for myself and still charge you rent? Sorry, charge US for rent?"

George made a sideways look to Harry, and said. "Trust is over rated this days. I should have made a precontract with you." He sighed. "But, I think I have the perfect motivator to make you pay. I have several new products from which I have failed to find volunteers for testing. I think I just found the one."

Harry burst out laughing. "No Way! I'll pay, I promise. Every thing but facing the wheezes."

George tried to hold a laugh, but couldn't do it with Harry's reply. At that moment Griphook entered, and watched with an amused look at the two young wizards. "I hate to interrupt. But Mr. Boulstridge is here." he said pointing at the entrance of the meeting room. "Shall I tell him to come in?"

Harry and George quickly composed themselves. "Yes, please." answered Harry.

Griphook went outside, and came back with a relatively old and fat wizard.

Harry stood up, while George approached the man with a stretched out hand. "Mr. Boulstridge. It's good to have you here, and its even better to not have to pay rent to you anymore." joked George.

The old man laughed out loud. "And I'm glad I won't have to dodge your aviatomobiles any more to pick up the rent."

"But I pay the rent at Gringotts. You never go to pick it up." replied George laughing but a little confused.

The old man laughed even harder. "Yeah, but I'm still glad I won't have to." he kept laughing, making George laugh in the process.

Harry was nervously chuckling. George turn to see him and said. "Harry. This is Mr. Boulstridge. One of the few people I know with a good sense of humor, and one of the reasons we rented his premises."

"And one of the reasons I rented it to them." added Mr. Boulstridge laughing. "I was tired of long faced business owners that when they saw me only said: Helloooooo Mizzzter Boulzztridddge. I haaave to teeell yooou thaaat youuur preeemizezzz are inaaa diiireee condiiition. I'mmm afraaid I'll haaave to dizcooount zomethiiing frooom the reeent." he said mimicking the presumptuousness of his ex tenants, and made George laugh hard.

"Well it is in dire condition," said George trying to sound business like. "and I think we should reconsider the amount to be paid for the purchase."

Mr. Boulstridge released a strong horse like laugh, and gave a pat on George's back that nearly knocked him down. "Only if you want to keep paying rent." he added laughing, and then he saw Harry. He was smiling and half laughing, but he looked confused. "Mr. Potter." he said approaching and shaking Harry's hand. "It's an honor, and please don't worry about the condition of the premises. The last tenant almost used the entire rent to practically rebuild it. It's as good as new." He turned to see George and extended his arm to gently pat his shoulder. "This one is a good Lad. But you can't stop joking once he gets you started." he straightened, and with a still joyful face added. "But we are here to do business." He turn to look at Griphook. "Mr. Goblin, Sir. I believe my Gringotts representative has everything in order? Do you have the documents we need to proceed?"

"Right here, Mr. Boulstridge. You all just have to sign to make the transfer." Griphook answered while placing a parchment and a quill on the table. "You first, Mr. Boulstridge."

The overweight wizard moved happily towards the parchment, and picked up the quill. "You know," he said to Harry and George. "I never had the intention of selling this. It has been in my family since my great great grandfather," he frowned a little. "or was him great grandfather? Merlin's beard. I can't remember. But it has been in my family for a very long time now." he signed the parchment. "I never got to marry, and have no heir." he place the quill on top of the parchment. "But if I can think of anyone whom I'd be willing to sell it to, then it would be you." He patted the parchment. "You are now a Weasley-Potter." he smiled widely. "It's a great honor to have," he laughed and said. "and a great honor to spend all this money traveling and enjoying around the world." He turned to look at Harry and George with a quizzical look, and raising both hands in a sign of defense. "Unless you are backing down now."

George and Harry chuckled., but George looked at Harry sidesways as if expecting an answer. He noticed, and quickly said. "Oh! No! We do want to buy it."

"Then don't make me nervous and sign." replied Mr. Boulstridge chuckling.

"Oh! Sure." said Harry. He approached the table and picked up the quill, and signed under his name. He gave the quill to George, who did the same.

Griphook took the parchment, and handed Harry another one. "This Mr. Potter," he said in a business manner, and not saying Harry as to sound more business like in front of Mr. Boulstridge. "is the authorization to transfer the amount of 543,750 Galleons from your vault into Mr. Boulstridge's."

Harry took the parchment and the quill from George, and said while signing. "Those mounds of gold used to look good in my vault."

"Don't you worry, Harry. Without expenses you'll get that money back in no time, and better to invest it in something productive than having it collecting dust in a vault." said George.

"He's a good business man, Mr. Potter, but if you find out that it's not as good a business as you thought, you can always rent or sell the premises and you'll get your money back with interest. I can assure you, so don't be worry." replied Mr. Boulstridge.

"Oh! no. I'm not. I trust George. I was just saying that they look good there." He laughed. "It was a little expensive, but thanks for selling it to us."

"You'll find out it's not, and that you have made a great investment, and its an honor that you two are now owners of it. It has great sentimental value for me. But I won't miss it. I'm old, and I'll be happy to use this money for traveling around the world, than to have the Ministry getting the full value of the premises when I die, as I have no heir." He sighed. "Well. It was good doing business with you. I'll probably be seeing you around." He turned to Harry. "Mr. Potter" He shook his hand. "Thanks for all you did, but especially for getting rid of He-who-must-not-be-named. I wish you the best, sincerely. You and your friends deserve it."

"Thanks, Mr. Boulstridge."

The old wizard turned to George, and place a hand on his shoulder. "It's good to see you well. I'm happy that you are remembering your brother with happiness instead of sorrow."

"I still get a little down when I'm alone. But I'm getting there." replied George.

"We are all going to where Fred is. But we are still here, and its better to live what we have left of our lives with joy than with regrets and depression, and its even better to fill everyones lives with happiness. Mr Potter and his friends prepared the ground for sowing, and now you will take that to the next step with your store. Remember Fred's joy and use that to bring that store of yours to incredible heights. People need the laugh." he finished patting George's shoulders.

"I will." replied George nodding.

Mr. Boulstridge turned to Griphook. "Thanks Mr. Goblin." and started walking away.

Griphook bowed a little and said. "You will have the transfer in your vault by tomorrow."

Mr. Boulstridge just nodded and went away.

"Well, partner. It's time to leave." said George

"Yeah. I guess." replied Harry shrugging. "Thanks, Griphook. I'll see you tomorrow to finish the things we have pending."

Griphook acknowledged with a bow, and Harry and George went away.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note:**

- Special thanks to my beta: HyperLily for making this story readable.

* * *

**Chapter Three**

**Diagon Alley**

**June 29, 1998**

"No, Ron. We'll tell you on lunch, at home" replied Ginny.

"Come on. You just have to walk back here. You can go home through this fireplace instead of the one at Flourish and Blotts." countered Ron.

"Ron! We still need to read those books. Do you want us to come back just to show them to you? Come, on."

"Fine!" sighed Ron in frustration. "See you at lunch."

Hermione kissed him on the cheek. "It's just four hours Hon, and the store is full. It'll pass in no time."

"Yeah, mate. We'll all have to wait until Hermione finishes them all." added Harry with a mischievous smile.

Hermione turned slowly towards Harry as if absorbing his comment. She locked eyes with him trying to see if he was being serious, and when he half grinned, they all broke up laughing including Ron. "Nice one, Harry. I see that being George's partner is having an effect on you."

The three of them started walking away from Wheezes and towards Flourish and Blotts. But before leaving, Harry turned towards Ron, and said in a low voice while shrugging and frowning. "I had to try." He walked away and caught up with them. "So, Hermione. You really know what it is?" Do you really think it's an energy center?"

"I'm positive, Harry. At least I am, if you weren't showing me a memory of a dream." she said half smiling. "I have already told you that if you would have read: Hogwarts a History, then you would understand it's an energy center, or more commonly known as centers of power."

"I read it. But don't remember reading anything about an energy center, Hermione." stated Ginny.

"But it does say that Hogwarts was built in a place of power. Guess what a place of power is? It's definitely not a nuclear power plant." replied Hermione.

"A cluclear what?" asked Ginny with a frown.

"Something the muggles use to create electricity." answered Harry, but seeing Ginny's face he added. "That thing I told you that feels like a small version of the cruciatus curse if you put your finger in. The thing muggles use to ..."

"Oh! Yeah. But what does it has to do with a power place?" asked Ginny again.

"Its only that we don't have machines that we can build to create energy." answered Hermione. "If you ever hear of a place of power in the Wizarding world, then its most likely a kind of energy center. I have never actually seen them as you did...," she paused, reconsidered and added. "and I did in your memories. I have read very little about them, but I know they are one of the most important aspects of wizard society. Regretfully much of that knowledge is lost. Places like the Ministry of Magic, Cathedrals, Hogwarts, and many other important places were built there for a reason, and that reason is that wizards tended to be more powerful in those sites. Professor Cuthbert said in history of magic that Merlin built Camelot in a place of power, but they never explained what those sites have, or do..."

**Flourish and Blotts …**

They arrived at Flourish and Blotts, and Hermione approached the manager of the store, who seemed to be very busy arranging books. "I'm sorry, Sir. I read in Hogwarts a History that it was built in a place of power. Do you have some books about these sites?"

The manager kept arranging books without looking back. "There are some old books about the subject. But I'm afraid they are very difficult to understand. At least I haven't."

"We would like to buy them!" added Harry in a rush.

The manager turned slowly to see the new participant, and upon seeing Harry, he drop the books he was carrying and stood up nervously. "Mr. Potter. It's a pleasure to have you here." he extended his hand and shook Harry's. He turn to Hermione and added with a little bow. "Mrs. Granger. I didn't know it was you asking. I apologize for my manners, but it is a little bit hectic in here."

"Oh! Don't worry please." replied Hermione.

The manager turned to Ginny. "I suppose you are Ms. Weasley?"

Ginny just nodded with a smile.

He made a slight bow at her. "But please, come, come." he took them a floor above into an area of dusty old books. "Hmm. Where are they?" the manager asked to himself. "This is where we normally put all the books that doesn't sell." he said speaking to Harry. "You can pick anyone you want. They are on sale. Fifty percent off."

"Thanks, but we are only looking for the books you mentioned to Hermione." answered Harry.

"Yes, yes. Of course. Just let me see where we put them." he search for at least 10 minutes. Pile after pile, until he nearly shouted in victory. "Here! Here they are. At last. I knew you were here." He turned around and approached Harry with four books in hand. "These are all we have. Thankfully they were all together."

Harry picked them up and read the titles while passing the first book to Hermione. "Earth Chakras..."

"That is from an Indian author. It's not a translation. He wrote it in English." added the Manager as a side note.

"Tourbillon..." added Harry handing another book to Hermione.

"That one is a translation from a French author." stated the Manager.

"The Aleph ..."

"That's from a British author, but I believe the name comes from another place."

And finally the thickest book. "Magical Vortex – Power Centers of the Wizarding World..." Harry paused for a moment thinking. "Magical Vortex, that's ..." he stopped short of saying: 'what we saw', and added in a rush, and slightly blushing. "an energy center?"

Ginny picked up on Harry's distress. "I think it could be, but we won't know until we read it, won't we?"

"So why are you searching for books of energy centers?" asked the manager.

"We are going back to Hogwarts..." answered Hermione smiling. "... and we were given the option of researching and writing a presentation on things we have never seen during classes. They'll give extra house points for good projects."

Harry and Ginny looked sideways at Hermione holding up a laugh.

"Oh! I see. But you should have picked an easier subject." replied the manager. "Those books have been gathering dust for a reason. They are extremely complex. Especially the thicker one. The others just seem to go around the subject as background talk.

They talked for a while with the Manager, payed for the books, and headed back to the Burrow.

**The Burrow**

**A few minutes later …**

Hermione and Ginny had already arrived, and Harry was just bursting out of the fireplace.

"Harry, dear. This just arrived for you." said Mrs. Weasley while handing an envelope and dusting his clothes off. "Ron got another. It's from Hogwarts."

Harry held the envelope in his hands and looked at the Hogwarts seal while saying "Thanks, Mrs. Weasley." He then proceeded to open it, and it read in the distinctive handwriting of Head Mistress Minerva McGonagall:

_Mr. Potter,_

_Minister Shacklebolt and I have been discussing the options available_

_to accommodate your education alongside your responsibilities as a_

_future Auror._

_I would like you to come tomorrow to discuss those options. I would_

_leave the time at your discretion as I'll be available all day._

_If tomorrow is not a good day for you, please discuss a good time_

_with Mr. Weasley and let me know as I would like to talk to both of_

_you at the same time. I would appreciate if the visit is done during _

_this week._

_Hope to see both of you soon._

_Yours sincerely,_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Head Mistress_

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry _

"Cool!" said Ginny peeking at the letter from one side. "I hope they give you your Auror training in Hogwarts." she added smiling.

"What? What is it, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"Professor Mc..." Harry started.

"Head Mistress." corrected Ginny jokingly.

"McGonagall," said Harry not giving up on Ginny's joke. "wants Ron and me to meet her tomorrow to speak about our education and training."

"That's good, Harry. At what time are you going?" questioned Hermione.

"I don't know. I'll ask Ron what time is best for him."

"OK. Why don't we take a look at those books while we wait for Ron."

"That's a good idea." added Ginny, while the three of them walked towards the living room.

The few hours of wait until Ron arrived met only with frustration, as complicated was an understatement for the huge complexity of the books, especially the big one. While they only browsed through the pages, it was clear that every thing was beyond OWL, NEWT, and in Harry's opinion a million levels more.

"Formulas, formulas and more formulas. How are you suppose to read this book." asked Harry in frustration.

"Well," said Hermione frowning. "They do explain every concept thoroughly." she shrugged. "to the point they use mathematics and physics in a way I have never seen."

"Mathematiks and Fiziks?" asked a bewildered Ginny.

"It's like arithmancy without divination, only numbers." answered Harry.

"You have heard about them before?"

"Yes, in muggle school. But nothing near this."

"Yes, never like this." added Hermione with wide eyes. "I do know that in muggle universities they teach stuff that could be as advanced as this."

"You say the muggles know? Do you think they helped write this book?" asked Ginny again.

"No. I believe that current muggle knowledge of mathematics and physics originated from books similar to this one. Ancient wizards are believed to have been far more knowledgeable than we are today. It's a pity that muggles are the actual inheritors of their knowledge and not wizards." replied Hermione.

"How so?"

"Look at it this way Ginny." said Hermione pausing for a moment trying to find the correct examples for a witch to understand. "There are more muggles flying in their own build machines than wizards do with magic. They have machines that wash clothes, others that heat food. The amount of artifacts they have are way beyond any wizard could ever imagine, and do you know any single wizard that has a clue on how those things work?"

"No. Maybe you two, or any muggle born."

"I'm afraid not. We only understand the concepts, but not the inner workings. The time we spent in muggle school, we only learned the basics." replied Hermione.

"You almost sound envious. Would you have preferred them to Hogwarts?" asked Ginny slightly amused.

"In a way." answered Hermione thoughtfully. "I envy their knowledge, … the knowledge of all they have accomplished. But no, I would have never have preferred them to Hogwarts. I have learned things no muggle have, and it was far more entertaining."

"So? What do we do?" asked Harry.

"We? Nothing. You on the other hand could use the extensive extra time you have to study them before ever going back to that vortex."

"Hey! How am I supposed to do this without you. You are the brains here." replied Harry.

"First, I'm not the brains here, otherwise I would have been in Ravenclaw." she said without a second thought. "Second, there is a difference between someone responsible and someone smart."

"Look, Hermione. There is no doubt in anyones mind that you are the most brilliant witch in Hogwarts..."

"No, Harry. I may be smart, but I'm not the smartest. What I really am, is the most responsible witch in Hogwarts. I invest a lot of my time reading, and that has made me knowledgeable. I'm sure if you had invested the same amount of time doing the same, you would probably have been far better than me. I have seen you do things for starters that took me hours to manage." she repositioned herself in the sofa to face directly at Harry. "Look, Harry. We may or may not be smart people, we may even be average, but as long as we are responsible and strong willed, we can accomplish great things. It's always better to have a great responsibility, than a great intelligence. You have the time. Use it, and will yourself to read, and research that of what you seek. In time, I know you'll crack these books."

"You are not being serious, Hermione. Are you? I really need your help with this."

"Harry, I'm not saying I'm not willing to help you. What I'm saying is that every thing in this book is way over me. I can tell you I'm extremely intrigued in knowing this, but once we get back to Hogwarts, I doubt there'll be much information in the library concerning this. There may be some books about the subject. They may even have these books, but I doubt they have books about advance mathematics and physics."

"Couldn't you buy some books on muggle libraries before we go back to Hogwarts?" asked Ginny.

"Yes! That's a good idea." replied Harry looking back at Hermione.

Hermione sighed. "Look, I'm not trying to dishearten you. But those book will not be light reading."

"They must explain what they are talking about. How hard can they be?" asked Ginny.

"Once I remember bringing a thick book to Harry and Ron, telling them I've found about Nicolas Flamel, and that I've done so while I was having some light reading. They looked at me as if I was insane. That book was only text. History and profiles, nothing more. Muggles on the other hand are far more logical than us, and if they require a book to understand complex mathematics and physics, I can guarantee you that it will be filled with numbers and formulas, and some of them would be far more than anyone of us can understand. Those books will surely make the assumption that you already know the subject in a basic and maybe even moderately advanced way. We'll have to buy every book on the subject, from the basics to the very advanced, and even then we won't know if that will actually help us understand the magical vortex books."

"I see your point." replied Ginny with a frown.

Harry sighed in frustration. "How then did the Peverell brothers managed to used that vortex to create the hallows? I don't think they were able to understand all of this." he said while pointing at the books.

"I don't think they did. But the fact that they mentioned having to deal with Death to acquire the hallows, makes me think the vortex could actually be lethal if not handled with care." answered Hermione.

"But the tale of the three brothers never mentioned that they created the hallows, only that they received them from Death." stated Ginny.

"We just don't know how much of that tale is distorted. Beedle the Bard tales are mostly moral teachings for young children." replied Hermione.

"But every thing suggests that they knew enough about vortexes to create the Hallows. I wonder if Ignotus knew even more, and created the invisibility cloak to help him defend himself while interacting with the vortex? We know that we can see it while wearing the cloak. Do you think this could be true, Hermione?" asked Harry.

"I really don't know Harry. I could only guess, and while the story says that two of the brothers died from different circumstances, I would say it had something to do with the vortex, but everything will be suppositions. I only urge you not to approach it until you are able to shed some light on its workings. You have time, use it, Harry. Every little you learn will help you decide how to approach it."

"You know I'm not too fond of reading, Hermione." replied Harry.

"Make it a habit, Harry. Force yourself to do so with a few minutes per day, and then increase the time."

"How?"

Hermione sighed. "How much time are you certain that you can hold a book open?"

"Forever... If I leave it open in a desk." answered Harry smiling, and Ginny chuckled.

"Come on, Harry. I'm being serious." said Hermione.

"Hmm. If I don't like the book? Maybe five minutes, then I start wondering about..."

"OK. Then force yourself to read at least five minutes per day. But you have to force yourself to do that. You don't go to sleep until you do it. You have to be responsible with that decision. If you make an agreement with yourself, you have to fulfill it. Make your word stronger than a sign contract. Once you start with five minutes, ask yourself every day if you are willing to increase it by another five. If you agree that you are able then go for ten, and so on. After a while you'll have gain the habit of reading, and you won't have to force yourself to do it anymore. You'll only have to worry about it becoming a vice." she blushed a little. "Like me, and that goes for everything in your life. To create a habit you want to have, you have to force it as a daily routine. You have time to spare, Harry. Time that you could be using in creating positive habits."

"Is this the way you have been doing things at Hogwarts. You just push yourself to create a habit you want?"

"Yes." she smiled. "It's my fathers fault. He created a monster." she laughed. "He always said what I already told you that it's always better to have a great responsibility than a great intelligence. He said that you could be extremely smart, but if you don't find a way to use it, it's as if you weren't. He also said that you could be an average person, but if you were responsible enough, you could always make great things. Imagine if you were both."

"We'll be like Dumbledore!" exclaimed Harry jokingly.

"Or more." replied Hermione. "Just try it, Harry, and you'll see."

"I will, and if I become a fraction as smart of what you are, it'll be a good investment."

"I'm just books, and the cleverness that comes with them." she then smiled heartedly at Harry and said. "You'll see that it's me that'll become a fraction of what you are."

Harry blushed at that, and then more when Ginny gave him a kiss.

For a few seconds, Harry seemed away and deep in thought, so Ginny grabbed his arm pulling herself close to him, and asked in a tone so that Hermione could hear. "What is it, Love?"

Harry sighed, and looked at her. "I'm sorry. I was thinking about being an Auror."

"What about that, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"I've... We've always been forced to fight, even if we didn't want to. Now that Voldermort is gone, I've picked a profession that will keep me in that edge constantly, and what Hermione said just got me thinking."

"What, Love?" asked Ginny.

"I'm not afraid of facing dark wizards. But we have to be honest, and accept that through many of those fights, we were victorious through just plain luck. I personally survived twice because of my Mother's protection, but the amount of close calls we've been through... Hmm. All I'm saying is that I can't keep expecting my luck getting me out of trouble, and what Hermine said struck a nerve. I'll have to create some very good habits if I want to grow independent of my luck." he finished smiling.

Both girls chuckled, and Hermione said. "And if you do that, you'll be unstoppable. Just make sure Ron does the same." she flinched. "I don't know what I'll do if something happened to him."

"Do what? And why are you worried of something happening to me?" said Ron arriving from the kitchen.

Hermione blushed, but at the same time jumped to hug and kiss him. "Nothing, Honey."

"Hermione was indoctrinating me in creating good habits. She wants you to do the same." added Harry.

"What? Why?" asked and incredulous Ron.

"She's just worried we'll get blown up in our first fight with dark wizards." replied Harry joking.

"Hey!" said Ron complaining to Hermione.

"No! Harry stop joking." she said playfully hugging Ron. "We were talking about the books, and how Harry should use his extra time to study them."

"Study them? Harry?" Ron snorted a laugh.

Now it was Harry's turn to complain. "Hey! You don't think I'm capable of that?"

"Sorry, mate. But if it wasn't for Hermione, we'd still be in first year." answered Ron cracking a smile, and then added a dramatization. "We wouldn't have picked a book if she hadn't pointed her wand at us."

Ginny burst out laughing, but she immediately blushed at seeing Harry's face. "Sorry, Love. But I just pictured the hero of the Wizarding world in professor Flitwick's class trying to pronounce win-GAR-dee-um lev-ee-OH-sa."

Harry chuckled, "Yeah, very funny. I'll regret showing you those memories, but Seamus blowing up his feather was ..."

"Too good to let pass." finished Ginny.

"Yeah, I won't forget that either." added Ron, and then said while opening his envelope. "So, Harry. Have you read this already? Mum said you got another."

"Yes. McGonagall wants us to go to Hogwarts tomorrow. She wants to discuss our options." answered Harry.

"Hmm." replied Ron reading the letter. "And if not tomorrow... This week at the latest."

"Yep."

"So? At what time to do you want us to go tomorrow?" asked Ron.

Harry shrugged. "You are the one working, so you decide."

"I have the whole day to pick. I just need permission from the boss. So boss? At what time do you want us to go tomorrow?"

"Ha! Funny. You know that's not my call. You'll have to ask George."

"That's not a very good arrangement you picked. You gave all the money, and he gets to decide?"

"And that's more than I wanted. I just wanted him to pay me back when ever he wanted, but he wouldn't have it any other way, but I'm not about to start making decisions, and less if it has to do with you."

"Hey! Why? I'm entitled to some special treatment. My best friend and my brother are the owners."

"I totally agree, and if it was my decision you could get your wage without having to go to work. So you see the problem right?"

Ron faked a frown. "Nope. Where?"

Ginny and Hermione laughed.

"That George will kill me, if I start getting mushy. Specially with you, so you'll have to work it out with him."

"Hmm. Well at least tell me what hour do you prefer, and I'll tell George in the afternoon. Hopefully he will accept it."

"As soon as you get up."

"OK. I'll ask George. If it's OK with him, we leave at eight?"

"Sure."

"Great. So? What's with the books ..."

**Later that night …**

Everyone was asleep... except for Harry. He was seated in a couch with the Magical Vortex – Power Centers of the Wizarding World book on his lap.

"Five minutes..." he murmured, and then thought looking at his handle watch. _'How will I know when they are over without getting distracted by having to see you?'_

He thought for a moment, and then took out his phoenix wand and conjured an alarm clock. A traditional mechanical alarm clock with two bells and a middle hammer appeared before him. He started to set the clock's alarm to sound in five minutes thinking. '_All this for five minutes. I have to find an easier and faster way."_

He placed the clock on the living room table, placed a muffiliato charm to avoid the bells waking everybody, and then started reading.

He had barely finished reading the small foreword of the book when the alarm rang. He made a quick flick from his wand vanishing the clock. "That was fast." he murmured, and stayed for a few seconds looking at the book, deciding if he should continue with the reading. He check the length of the preface, and decided to leave it for another day. "OK. Tomorrow ten minutes." he murmured again. "That was enough for today" he added chuckling. He knew his reading session was pathetic, but having followed Hermione's instructions, he felt good in that he was taking the proper steps into creating a good reading habit, even if he didn't feel it at all.

He picked things up, and walked upstairs towards Ron's room. He opened the door slowly to avoid waking him up, and place the books on his trunk. He then turned around and slowly left the room and went down stairs again to sit where he was before.

All kind of thoughts appeared in his mind. Tomorrow he was probably going to make a big life decision, but of what he was certain of was of joining the Aurors, and he had to do something about it. He knew that he was being protected. That the Burrow had every kind of Ministry protection cast on it, and if he knew the Minister, then there probably were Aurors outside the perimeter. He even knew that while the Ministry was in no shape because of losses suffered during the war. They had at least increased security to the most influential of places like Diagon alley and several others, and without taking into account the short visits to his estates, he had kept to those secure places to avoid risks as everyone was doing.

During the nearly two months that had passed since the Battle of Hogwarts, and all those months before the battle, he had enough time to think about what went wrong and right. The thing that bothered him most, was that in the great majority of all those close calls, he had little to do in terms of ability for having overcome them, and it was due to team work and sheer damn luck that he was still alive today. There were probably many other reasons, and in some circumstances his personal abilities could have tilted the balance for his luck to do the rest. But it was LUCK. Luck that had him most bothered. He wasn't against it. Merlin's beard no. He welcomed it. But he just couldn't depend on it to always pull him out of trouble.

He strongly wanted for his abilities to decide the outcome of any future event, and he knew he was strong. He was probably one of the most powerful wizards alive if not the most, and he definitely was the most powerful of those he knew. The problem was that the huge amounts of energy he had, didn't make him a master dueler in the least, the same way that a huge intelligence didn't make one wise. He lacked training. He knew he was going to get that in the Auror training course, but he also knew that he was going to be a mark for every dark wizard out there. He couldn't wait for Auror training to make him a good dueler nor a fast thinker.

With everything that had happened, he knew that once he joined the Aurors, people would start looking up to him to solve problems even if he didn't want to, and the worst part was that probably the same Aurors would expect more form him than the rest as it was him that finally defeated Voldemort. No. He couldn't wait. He had to take matters into his own hands as he had done before, but this time he had to concentrate in developing his strengths, and making his weaknesses unexploitable.

He sighed, went towards the door and opened it. It was dark and it was raining lightly. He stepped out, and walked towards the perimeter of the wards, and before crossing them, he put up his cloak and went through.

Out of curiosity he looked around to see if there were some Aurors mounting guard, but saw no one. He apparated away, and into the perimeter of what would be his future home. The lines of olive trees were barely discernible from where he stood as the darkness was nearly impossible to pierce. He walked towards the house, and started casting all the protection spells he had learned during the last year, and almost half an hour later, he stepped inside.

It was dark. He cast a human detection charm, and after finding no one, he started lightening up the candles. The room lighted up a bit, but it wasn't like having muggle lightening. That was something he would have to take care if he wanted to exploit night hours for any kind of activity.

He search the house for the biggest room with less furniture, and found it to be the living room on the lower floor. He started moving things with his wand towards the walls so that he had ample space to work with, and once he finished he sat down in a sofa deciding what to do.

_'It would have been great to have the room of requirements. That would make things easier.' _Harry thought. "So? What do I do?" he added out loud. He started thinking and counter thinking, and finally decided that one of his strengths could be dual wielding, but only if he was able to manage casting two different spells at the same time. He also though that wand-less magic should be a must, but he had no idea of how to do it. So, he started with dual wielding.

He took out his wands, and started working with simple spells. He conjured a feather, and casted a Wingardium Leviosa spell on it with his right hand bringing it to chest height. With his left he transmuted the feather into a stick and back, and then again.

He sometimes lost focus deciding to keep the feather in the air, while the transmutation went wrong. Others he completed the transmutation but the stick felt to the ground. After several hours, he was finally able to do so without much problems. He felt like in first year, but what he was doing required a huge concentration. Speaking the spells was impossible as you couldn't speak two spells at the same time, so he had to do it wordlessly. The spells were simple, but wordless magic was not, and doing so at the same time made it impossible to even mutter them. He had to focus on the body sensations of both spells to be able to mimic them through sheer will to make them happen. Also, the concentration needed to do so while multitasking was huge, and while this could be seen as first year magic because of the spells employed, the process of using them was far more advance than any wizard had done before.

He was strained, and took a seat. He mentally analyzed what he had done. He had been able to work with two spells at the same time and felt invigorated by that, but he knew that creating two simultaneous advanced spells would take a lot of practicing time. Thankfully, he didn't need to create a habit of it as he loved every part of spell casting. So, he was not going to need an alarm clock, or to set a fix time for practicing, as this was becoming second nature for him. Reading... That would be completely another thing. But he was happy. He had started his own personal training routine, and while he would need to polish it up, he was already on the way on beating Hermione on her own game. He smiled.

He returned to the Burrow. Slept a couple of hours, and was again the first one up. The day for the big decision had come.

**Hogwarts – School of Witchcraft and Wizardry**

**June 30, 1998**

"They worked fast. I mean, when we left, the castle was torn to pieces." said Ron in a marveled way. They had crossed the main gates coming from Hogsmeade after apparating, and were looking at the castle as they approached.

"Yeah, I guess magic really works." replied Harry mockingly.

"Very funny, Mate."

Harry laughed. "Just joking, and you are right. It's really impressive."

"So? Where do you figure we'll find McGonagall?"

Harry search into his pouch, and answered. "Dunno... Let's find out... I solemnly swear that I'm up to no good." The marauders map came to life, and Harry could see very few people moving around, so, it was easy to spot McGonagall. "She's walking towards the front gate. I think she knows we are here... Mischief managed." finished Harry towing the map away and into his pouch.

As if prophesied, McGonagall came through the big open doors. "Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley. It's good you were able to come today." she said with an uncommon smile. "Please," she added while showing the way. "Let's go to my office. We have much to discuss."

As they walked towards the Head Mistresses office, Ron asked. "How were you able to fix the castle so fast, Professor?"

McGonagall frowned. "It may have been two months of relaxing vacations for you Mr. Weasley, but for us, it felt as a year gone by. A lot of effort was required to fix Hogwarts, and a lot of help from the Ministry was provided. Even some students helped."

At those last words, Ron felt shameful. "I'm... I'm sorry Professor. It never crossed my mind that you would be needing help. I was just glad it was all over."

"Nonsense, Mr. Weasley. You two and Ms. Granger have made for this school, and the entire wizarding community I might add, what no one has done before. You had a very rough year." she lowered her voice. "Hunting Horcruxes," her tone returned to normal. "and all the dangers associated with it. I'm still impressed on how you managed to enter Gringotts and escape unscathed..."

"Not precisely unscathed, Professor." added Harry. "I'm still not sure who we have to thank in getting out of there alive, other than our extreme luck... and an angry Dragon."

"Yeah." reaffirmed Ron.

"Well, but still in one piece, Mr. Potter." she added with an even more uncommon admiring smile. "But I'm sure it had to do with more than luck and a dragon. That's a story you'll have to tell me sometime. But anyway, you have done far more than what was asked of you, so there was no way I was calling you back to help in rebuilding Hogwarts. After what happened that became a Ministry responsibility, and I made sure that they provided the resources in rebuilding it. Minister Shacklebolt was true to his word, and not only provided the resources but the manpower needed. There were many Ministry workers helping with the reconstruction."

The talk continued without distraction all the way to McGonagall's office.

"Please take a seat." said McGonagall as she sat on her chair. "I have had long discussions with the Minister regarding your future, and I believe we have reached a solution that will guarantee your education here at Hogwarts, and your training as Aurors. But first I need to know Mr. Weasley if you'll be joining the Aurors with Mr. Potter."

Ron turned to look at Harry, smiled, and then turned back to McGonagall. "I think I have had enough experience working in a store to know that's not something I'd like to do in the future. So... Yes. I'll be joining Harry with the Aurors."

Harry just couldn't hide a smile, neither could McGonagall.

"I'm glad to hear that, Mr. Weasley." her smile wide, which moments later vanished into seriousness. "Good, then. The situation is this. The Ministry is struggling to regain its former strength. Many Death Eaters are still at large and there are not enough people in the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Aurors to search for them. Security has been increased in public areas to discourage any attacks, but the lack of personnel in others had seen the increase of normal crime. Some of them attributed to Death Eaters."

"Enough order has been restored at the Ministry for Minister Shacklebolt to speed up recruitment efforts. The first class to join will do so the 24th of August. There are many students that have been working with the Ministry in low level security assignments including Mr. Longbottom, Mr. Finnigan, and a few others. They will be join training on that date too."

Harry and Ron turned to see each other at the mention of Neville and Seamus.

"Are they with the Aurors, Professor?" asked Harry.

"No, Mr. Potter. They work under the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. They have been working on low level assignments so that more experienced officers can be deployed in the field. Minister Shacklebolt has been reluctant to risk people without training. Only because they fought here, and the majority were trained by you at the D.A. That the Minister allowed a few, mostly those of the D.A. to join in the ranks. You should be proud."

Harry smiled blushing. "I am professor, but of them."

McGonagall smiled. "And I'm of you." she straightened in her chair and regained her common seriousness. "Becoming an Auror is not an easy task. Only the best make it into their ranks. It not only requires NEWT level knowledge, but very well developed specialized skills, including dueling. Auror training starts first at the Magical Law Enforcement Academy. You'll be tested, and they'll determine if you are suitable for Auror training. If not, you can still join as a normal officer and grow thorough the ranks to reach hit wizard. From there you can apply again to become an Auror."

"I have to remained you that very few recruits start as Aurors. The majority made a law enforcement carrier becoming hit wizards first, and then applying for transfer to the Aurors. Normally this Aurors are not as skilled as those who joined the ranks from the beginning."

"Do you know any who started at the beginning, Professor?" asked Harry.

"Moody, Shacklebolt, Tonks, she barely made it through, mostly because of her metamorphic abilities. Others, like Dawlish became Aurors from the Hit Wizard line, and many are political assignments."

"Political assignments?" asked Ron.

"Something you'll have to learn by force I'm afraid. Those Aurors are just filling positions of influence for other political figures." answered McGonagall, but saw Ron's confused face and added. "They ask favors later, Mr. Weasley. Some of them are corrupt. But you didn't here this from me." her face went dead serious. "Am I clear?"

"Yes, Professor." answered both in unison.

"Professor, If I may ask?"

"Yes, Mr. Potter. What is it?"

"How are we going to join if we don't have NEWTs?"

"Minister Shacklebolt has created a special dispensation for every 7th year student of the last school year that wishes to join the Ministry. Everybody will be forced to qualify to NEWT level as they advance through their training, but will not be graded to pass the recruitment test. In your case, as Aurors, you will be tested in your other abilities to see if you either join training as Aurors or standard law enforcement officers. This takes me to what I've been wanting to talk to you about. Your school year."

"Acquiring NEWT level grades qualify you not only to apply for Auror training, but for any other job. Even if you wish to join the Aurors, it's always better to have NEWTs in case you change your minds. Auror candidates require NEWT level knowledge in Potions, Defense Against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms and Herbology. While you'll be dispensed of this requirements, your training as an Auror will demand them, and you will be forced to catch up."

"What we are working with the Ministry is the exchange of services. We provide their recruits the training to put them up to speed in their requirements, and they'll provide the security that many parents are demanding."

"I don't understand professor." stated Harry.

"The Department of Magical Law Enforcement will provide a 24 hour security service for this school until the great majority of the Death Eaters at large are captured. Three, eight hour shifts will be provided, and you'll be the ones doing so."

"We?" asked Ron.

"Yes, Mr Weasley. In exchange Hogwarts will prepare you in the subjects that I mentioned. You will not take classes. You will receive tutorship, and you'll prepare your subject for testing. When you feel you are ready, your professor will test you, and if he or she feels you are ready, you'll be able to sit your exam at the Ministry. Hogwarts protections are strong, and there shouldn't be any need for you to patrol school, other than be ready for any eventuality. You may use that time to prepare your subjects. You'll also be constantly working in the Ministry either on assignments or in training. This will not be an easy year, but we'll try to help work out your subjects as fast as we can."

"I see." said Ron a little discouraged.

"Don't worry Mr. Weasley. On the good side, you won't get any homework. You'll just be shown the way, and you'll prepare your subjects at your own pace. Your school year will be easier than for the rest of the students. The tough part is that you'll also be managing your responsibilities as Aurors. If I'm allow to give both of you a recommendation, then it would be to prepare yourself for the first test. That will determine if you start immediately as Aurors or if you'll have to make your way through normal law enforcement to apply for a transfer many years from now."

Ron swallowed hard. "And how do we do that, Professor? I mean how will we be able to past the first test if we haven't work with advanced magic the likes of NEWTs."

"Don't worry too much, Mr. Weasley. You actually have the advantage above others. You both have faced Death Eaters. You were both hunted down by Voldemort." she said this last word a little tensed. "So you at least have proven able in dueling, concealment and disguise, not to mention stealth and tracking. You are the only know Wizards including Ms. Granger that have been able to break into Gringotts, take something, and escape alive. Not only that. You did so into the most secured of vaults." She was feeling full of pride, but quickly regained her composure and added. "I'm not saying it was OK, but due to the circumstances, necessary. Then there is also the fact that you broke into the Ministry when everybody was looking for you. So, I'm sure that whomever is leading the Aurors will make anything necessary to have you both inside fast. Not to mention that Minister Shacklebolt is adamant in having you both at any costs."

"Why so, Professor?" asked Harry.

"Even if you want it or not. You are heroes. Having you in the Aurors will send a strong signal to every dark wizard out there. People will feel far more secure in knowing that those who defeated Voldemort will now be protecting them from harm. Also the situation inside the Ministry is not as one would want. There are many Ministry officials still working there that contributed with the Death Eaters but that there is no proof of. Cleaning the Ministry from the inside will be a very tough job for Shacklebolt. I wouldn't want to be on his shoes. He knows that if there's anyone out there in whom he can trust, it's you. So rest assure he will be relaying in you two politically. He wants you in a position from where you can wield power, and that's in the Aurors. They are the highest ranked officials inside the Ministry. Lately they have fallen in disgrace through political meddling, but I'm sure Shacklebolt will want to reform them to their great days where only the best made it in, and I'm sure you two will help him a lot in that reform."

"So returning to the first test. Just make sure you excel in one area, and you'll be fine."

"In which areas, Professor?" asked Ron anxiously.

McGonagall smiled. "The ones I mentioned, Mr Weasley: Dueling, concealment and disguise, stealth and tracking, and several others more working on the NEWT subjects they have as requirements. Tonks made it in, almost only because she excelled at concealment and disguise, even though she was average in other areas."

"I see." answered a not very convinced Ron.

"There is another thing you'll probably be doing here. We have still been unable to find a suitable replacement for Defense Against the Dark Arts. Minister Shacklebolt asked me if that subject could be handled by the Department of Magical Law Enforcement as it will help prepare people who wish to join its ranks. He also said that it will be better for the students as the instructors could prepare them to defend themselves from real life situations. I don't like the Ministry meddling with Hogwarts affairs, but he had a strong point there. I agreed with the condition that Hogwarts be allowed to pick the instructors." she smiled. "As you too will be part of that Department, I'm sure you'll be the ones I'll be selecting."

"Professor?" asked a bewildered Harry.

"But you just said it was going to be a difficult year. I don't …." started Ron before being interrupted.

In McGonagall's serious face an amused smile could be glimpsed "I'm responsible in preparing you for the level of knowledge the Aurors are demanding. I have to be very clear in the fact that the best way to learn, is to teach. Part of your tutorship in other subjects will be to help your professors in preparing and giving classes. That's something you won't escape from. But in Defense Against the Dark Arts, I could ask of you to accept the full responsibility of managing that subject. That's the most important one for both of you, and the one you need to be best prepared for. You also have a lot of experience in training the D.A. So it shouldn't be a problem."

"You won't be teaching those classes alone as there may be some other ex-seventh year students that could be joining the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. But I will certainly give you the responsibility in giving and preparing the higher classes as you both are the most experienced. You'll decide how, but I will expect you to keep in line to NEWT requirements."

"Professor..." started Harry.

"This is a transition year for both the Ministry and Hogwarts. I need the help, Mr. Potter." she turned her eyes to Ron. "Yours too, Mr. Weasley. I need people I can trust or I wouldn't be asking."

Harry stood in silence for a moment. He turned to look at Ron and immediately knew he would follow him in his decision. He gave a small nod to him, and received a similar one in return. He turned to McGonagall and said. "You can count on us, Professor."

McGonagall smiled and said. "I'm happy to hear that. You will of course have my full support. Now. That is all I had to tell you. Is there anything you wish to ask?"

"Yes, Professor. Are we going to be staying here? I mean, are we going to sleep here? and er... eat here?" asked Ron clearly already savoring Hogwarts' food.

"I believe you will, but that's a Ministry decision, so it's up to them. As long as you are not required elsewhere you will. Also the fact that the Ministry will be assigning several of you on guard duty, teaching and training, you'll be able to plan for contingencies."

"I'm sorry, Professor, but I didn't understand." asked Harry.

"If you are unable to give classes because you are needed elsewhere, some of the others will be able to handle those responsibilities for you. So you'll probably won't be staying here as your previous years, but will be moving between the Ministry and its assignments, and here. Is there any thing else?"

"I think not, Professor." he turned to Ron and asked. "Ron?"

"Eh! no." he replied.

"Well, then, you are free to go." said McGonagall. "It's been good to see you both." she added with a smile.

"Professor. Just one thing. May I go see Kreacher and Winky?"

"Sure, Potter. You can go anywhere you want."

"Thanks, Professor."

Harry wanted to tell Kreacher that the house at Grimmauld Place was going to be rented. He wanted to ask him to move his things from there to the 88 acre house at Godric's Hollow. It wasn't going to be easy, but he had made his decision and the house had to be cleaned and repair for its tenant.

He did that while Ron ate a sandwich, and then both went back to the Burrow.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Four**

**The Burrow**

**July 31, 1998**

It was late. Everybody had gone to sleep except Harry and Ginny who were still snuggling in the living room. There were presents in the table in front of them, but the mess of Harry's birthday party had already been cleaned up with a few waves of Mrs. Weasley's wand.

Ginny kissed Harry gently on his chin, then slowly on his cheek, his eyelids, and finally a small peck on his lips. She then asked. "Are we going to open your remaining presents now?"

They had opened the majority of the presents in the presence of everyone so that Harry could thank appropriately, but there were some that were sent via owl as some people could not make it.

"Sure. Where do you want to start?"

Ginny smiled mischievously, and almost jumped to pick the first one. "This one." she said tearing the wrap of the biggest box.

Harry smiled and joined her in the present opening ceremony.

There were 'oohs' and 'ahhs' and even some 'hmms', but it was the last present, if it could be consider one, which got Harry's attention.

It was an envelope. I plain paper envelope. But in the place where a common wax seal was normally found, in this one there was also a seal, but not of wax. It seemed as if it was a continuation of the paper, but it was clearly golden, and at close inspection it seemed to be gold. The thing was that the paper melded into the gold as if all was part of the envelope. Harry was not surprised by this, as it was normal in the magical world to see strange things, but it definitely was not a common thing to see. In this case neither he nor Ginny had ever seen something similar.

The golden seal was formed starting with a Florence flask in the middle, similar to those used in potions. The flask looked to be half full and on top of an inverted triangle. In each vertex of the triangle there was an encircled image. One had the Moon, another and eye, and on the last the Sun. Two other circles originated at the vertexes of the triangle completely encircling it, and between the two circular lines, there were a total of 15 small symbols separated in three groups of five. One group per side of the triangle.

Everything that arrived via owl, was checked and rechecked to avoid any type of curse, but Harry immediately rechecked personally with the spells Bill had taught him, and found nothing. Ginny was looking a little perplexed at Harry, as she hadn't expected him to distrust the envelope.

"Sorry, but it looks strange." said Harry shrugging.

"Whom do you think it's from?" asked Ginny.

"I don't know." answered Harry, picking it up.

There was no sender written on the outside other than the seal. Harry opened it, and it read:

_Harry,_

_The perception of life is as varied as the entities perceiving it and the point of view from which _

_they do so, but the source from which it thrives, and the truth laid within it, is only one and indivisible._

_What you perceive in the higher dimensional vibrations, including those in which we include our _

_dreams, is more real than what you perceive in the mundane plane of matter. I hope that what our_

_friend told you, has not been set aside as gibberish, or part of the incomprehensible meanings of _

_a dream._

_Courage is the instrument that breaks the filter which impedes us to perceive the true nature of _

_reality, and through it, you had taken the first steps into a realm of unknowns to common humans_

_and wizards._

_It is said that when the student is ready the master appears. But it is often not understood that_

_the student IS the teacher. It is you who have become ready to be your own master, but in the_

_process of evolution the mastery is sometimes gained through the meticulous study of the works_

_of nature, including the works of similar entities or people as yourself._

_God reserves to himself to reveal to a selected few certain things of knowledge, which therefore_

_ought not to be written. If you ever find yourself in a moment of impasse, remember that there_

_are others with the knowledge to open the gateway for you._

_May you find light where there is darkness, and when you don't, remember that you ARE the source_

_of that light._

_Your friend,_

_Nicolas Flamel._

Harry's jaw almost dropped to the floor. He was speechless, and only because Ginny spoke did he realized that he was still on Earth.

"Nicolas Flamel?" asked Ginny, flabbergast. She had read the letter side by side with Harry.

Harry just shrugged for an answer. He was still speechless, but his mind was in overdrive. _'How does he know? Only Ron, Hermione, and Ginny know about this. Was what I heard Dumbledore tell me that night at Hogwarts real? Was him really Dumbledore?...' _Thoughts of this type filled Harry's mind, and it was Ginny again who interrupted his train of thought.

"Harry?"

He slowly turned to look at her, and said. "I'm sorry Gin. I... I just don't know how this is possible. How does he know what I saw that night? How does he know its my birthday? ..."

Ginny interrupted him. "Everybody knows when your birthday is, Harry. That's not a difficult question to answer. But you are right with the first one."

"Do you think Ron and Hermione had anything to do with this?" said Harry, holding the letter at chest height, and shaking it slightly.

"I don't think so, Harry. But anyways, that is neither Ron's nor Hermione's handwriting."

"Yes. I know that. But I mean. Do you think they told him. I mean, Ron was adamant that I go talk to Flamel. Do you think they could have told him? … about what Dumbledore told me?"

"I really don't think so, Love." she added holding Harry's arm. "We can ask them tomorrow, but I don't think they would have done that without consulting you."

"Yeah... You are probably right. But then, how does he know?"

"If Dumbledore told you, he could probably have told him."

"It could be, but Dumbledore was in a hurry. They... whomever they are, gave him very little time to speak to me."

"Well..." added Ginny in thought. "If they are somehow watching you, they could have seen that you were not seeking help with Flamel, and could have let Dumbledore tell him, they could even have told him themselves, but... I don't know."

"Watching me?" asked Harry with a little frown.

"Well, Dumbledore knew where you were that night, so they may have some ways to know were you are, and maybe then even what you do."

"You are possibly right. They knew what I had done. That's why Dumbledore was allowed to talk to me." Harry looked intently at Ginny's eyes and asked a little apprehensively. "Who are they?"

Ginny grabbed his other arm and got closer. "I don't know, Love. But I think it's really important for you to go talk to Flamel. Send him a letter. Don't waste time."

Harry looked down to the letter still in his hands and said. "I... I'll probably have to."

"Yes, Love. You have to. Send him a letter tomorrow. Ask if you could see him..." her eyes went on thinking mode and she then added. "the 12th of August."

"The 12th of August? Why not this week?"

"I don't want to risk it." replied Ginny.

"Risk what?" asked Harry in complete confusion.

"That he may want you to stay for a few days, and that you'll miss my birthday."

"Oh! Yes! Your birthday, on the 11th, right." replied Harry slightly ashamed.

"Yes, on the 11th." stated Ginny chuckling.

"You are right, Gin. I'll tell him on the 12th, and you'll come with me. We can even ask Hermione and Ron if they want to join us."

"And what if Flamel only wants to talk to you?"

"He probably will, but that doesn't mean we can't all go. If that's the case, you three can just wait for me doing something interesting."

"And will there be something interesting to do? We don't even know where he lives." she smiled and added chuckling. "I'm not going to wait for you in some remote woods even if Ron and Hermione are with me."

Harry laughed. "Yeah, you are right. I guess we'll have to find out where he lives first."

* * *

Several days passed including Ginny's birthday, and the 12th of August arrived. Harry had sent a letter to Flamel, and received a confirmation that it was OK for him to visit him on the 12th.

The four of them had said their goodbyes and were walking towards the perimeter of the wards.

"So Harry? We just go and have a few days of fun and we get back, right?" asked Ron

"Yeah, mate."

"You sound worry, Hon." stated Hermione.

"A little."

"Why?"

"Because I just have twelve more days to train for Auror Examination. The 10 days I've been training with Harry since I resigned to George at the Wheezes doesn't seem enough."

"Don't worry, mate. We are doing just fine." stated Harry.

"You are the one doing just fine. You have beat me in every duel."

"That doesn't mean you are not fine too." added Ginny, and then said chuckling teasing Ron, "It just means that Harry is better." she laughed while grabbing Harry's arm.

Ron just turn to look at her with killer eyes.

"You should go easy on him, Harry." said Hermione. "You'll break his confidence."

"I'm not going to, Hermione." answered Harry, slightly shaking his head. "The death eaters and the instructors are not going to go easy on us." He turn to look at Ron. "You are really doing fine, mate. We are just starting, but I bet you can already defeat every other witch or wizard trying to join the Aurors, and that includes Seamus and Neville."

"Do you really think so, Harry?" asked a not so convinced Ron.

"I am, mate. I don't want to brag. You know I don't like any of this... Of being special. But I can't help having this much energy. My spells are far more powerful than before..."

"Yeah, that much I've felt..." interrupted Ron.

"I'm also using the Elder wand..."

"And your phoenix feather wand," added Ron, and then stated in a strong manner. "at the same time. How is that even possible?"

"Yeah, and that. But the thing is that I'm not and average opponent anymore, Ron. I can't explain any of this yet, but I'm really, really sure that you are doing fine. But I promise that as soon as we return, we'll train even harder."

"Thanks, Harry. I needed to hear that." replied Ron.

"And we'll join you, and I won't take no for an answer. I know you two want to train alone, but we want to help." said Hermione and then turned to look at Ginny. "Don't we?"

"Yes, but?" answered Ginny turning to look at Harry.

"There is not enough space for the four of us." replied Harry.

"We can train outside. We can extend the wards. Your house terrain is huge, Harry." stated Hermione.

"We are going to get nervous if you are there, and we'll also end up playing instead of training."

"I promise we won't play. We'll focus on helping you train. I promise." added Hermione in a pleading way.

"Please, Harry?" added Ginny.

"I know I'm going to get nervous if you two are there." stated Ron, not very convinced of the idea. "But I don't have a problem, as long as you help us."

"We will." replied Hermione.

"But if you start messing around, you are gone." stated Harry.

"Grumpy." joked Ginny, and Harry smiled.

They crossed the wards and apparated away. They reached the French capital city of Paris. It was a long apparition, almost as long as going from London to Hogwarts, but with the memories provided by Fleur the day before, it was doable.

They arrived at the French Ministry of Magic immigration center where they were processed, and instructed on the proper apparition procedures inside France. The French had some apparition wards inside the sub stations doting Paris, so the four of them apparated to the subway station of Rambuteau. From there they walked the three blocks to 51 rue de Montmorency, where Nicholas had told him to have lunch with his friends, and then wait there where Harry would receive further instructions.

They arrived, and there was a red sign with yellow letters in the form of a cauldron that read:

Auberge

Nicholas Flamel

datant de 1407

Relais Gastronomique.

On the facade of the building you could see an inscription that read:

Nous homes et femes laboureurs demourans ou porche de ceste maison qui fut faite en l'an de grâce mil quatre cens et sept somes tenus chascun en droit soy dire tous les jours une paternostre et un ave maria en priant Dieu que sa grâce face pardon aus povres pescheurs trespasses Amen.

"I hope he speaks English, Harry. Otherwise you are in for a rough time." said Ron, chuckling at seeing Harry's stupefied face of not having understood a word he was reading.

Harry only nodded slowly.

"I though you said you read one of those muggle language learning books before coming here." said Ron, in a questioning way.

"You read a French learning book, Harry?" asked Hermione.

"No. Nothing like that. I just pick it up the other day when I bought the books on elementary physics. I though that it could help me. But I only learned to ask for food and directions. Nothing more."

"You are taking the reading stuff seriously, mate." added Ron.

"I'm just following Hermione's instructions of adding 5 minutes everyday if I feel OK with the amount of time. I'm currently at 60 minutes per day. So I needed to find other books, because the big ugly vortex one is just too dense to swallow. I though that learning a little French couldn't hurt. The book was easy enough, but it seems it's also simple enough, because other than a few words here and there, I just didn't get a thing of what is written here."

Ginny chuckled. "So what does it say in your understanding."

"Eh... Our working man and woman, blah, blah … of this house, blah, … of one thousand four hundred and seven, are, blah, … to say one paternostre? And one ave maria?, blah, … God to forgive this pour sinners or trespassers, Amen." Harry just turned to look at Ginny, and shrugged saying. "I think."

"It's not bad love." replied Ginny.

"Yeah, it's not bad love." teased Ron. "If that is actually what it's written, but I heard too many blah, blahs."

"Well, I really don't know the context, because more than half of those words I just didn't understand. But if I try to figure out what they say through the words I know, is that people in that date had to say a Pater..."

"OK. Let's go inside." said Ron.

"Hey! You asked." stated Harry.

"Yeah, but it's getting boring." replied Ron, chuckling, followed by some laughs from Ginny and Hermione.

"Yeah, very funny."

"No." replied Ron. "Very funny will be hearing you ask for food. Not funny will be if I don't get to eat because you were unable to. I'm starving."

Harry, Ginny, and Hermione burst out laughing.

The restaurant looked old from the outside, probably because it was considered an historical building by the muggles, and any restoration had to be allowed by their government. But from the inside, while still old, it had a more appealing look. There were several round tables with white tablecloth and white chairs for sitting four people, and several two person rectangular tables bordering one of the walls with one white chair on the opposite side of the wall, and a long cushioned red sofa attacked to the wall on the other.

Things immediately started looking bad for Harry. The hostess in his understanding just spoke gibberish, and he only managed to raised four fingers and say. "quatre."

If the hostess had said anything different, she just didn't show. She directed them to one of the free round tables for them to seat, and gave them four menus. She said something that Harry interpreted to be that they would soon be attended by a waitress, and just wave them while going away.

The four picked up their corresponding menus, and without saying a thing started reading it... no, looking at it.

Ron sighed. "How am I suppose to tell you what I want, if I can't understand a word... Oh! Wait! Filet! Filet de sanbr... de sandr... de san... whatever. Filet! That I know. I want this one." he added pointing to a line in the menu."

The four laugh for a while trying to decipher what the menu had, and then to decide what they wanted.

The waitress arrived and asked. "Etes-vous prêt?"

"Eh?" was the only thing Harry could answer, but before giving her another chance to speak again, he said pointing one finger to Ron and reading the menu. "Monamiii veuttt unn filettt deusandreeleve edatdeolivenccreme enderob detomato."

The waitress eyes went round like 'eggs', or more precisely like 'oeufs' as she was French. Ginny, and Ron burst out laughing as if they had just seen Professor Flitwick in high heels. Hermione was barely controlling a laugh, but turned to see if the other customers were bothered by the explosive laugh of the Weasley's. When she saw that some of them were looking at them with curious smiles, she couldn't hold it and laugh out loud, but she at least had the decency to cover her mouth.

Harry was tomato red, but had a big smile on his face. He shook his head lightly and said to the others shrugging. "Well, at least I tried."

"Ang yuu did a regmarkabul yob." stated the waitress, with a big smile also trying to hold a laugh.

"Oh! Thank, Merlin. You speak English." said Ron, in a sigh.

"Mergling?"

"Eh, Thank..." started Ron, before Hermione interrupted him.

"I think he meant. Thank, God."

"I dong't know why you tourgists thank Mergling. But therge are too manyyy people thanking Mergling coming to thiz restaugrant." stated a smiling waitress.

Ron was blushing, it was clear he wasn't the first wizard making that mistake, and it was also obvious that the waitress has not been obliviated as it would have happened in England. But at least they were able to ask for lunch without problems.

They ate a wonderful meal, and then the waitress returned with the check, which she left in the table, smiled, and went away.

Harry picked the check and when he saw the total, the numbers disappeared replaced by new text. It read:

_Tell your friends to meet you here in two hours, there_

_are several museums nearby that may be appealing to_

_them. Then head upstairs two floors, and grab and kiss_

_the philosopher stone. _

_It's not real, but only you know how the original looks._

_It's a Port-key. It will take you to where I am._

_Don't worry about the check. It's on the house._

_See you soon,_

_Nicholas._

The text disappeared, and he could now see a paid consumption check.

Harry explained to the rest what had just happened.

Ginny was the first to reply. "Is it safe to use a port-key? Who knows where it will send you."

"I thought about that, but only Mr. Flamel knows how a philosopher stone looks like. Many may have a rough idea, but I think I'll be able to pick up the differences if it's a fake. But hey! We are in Auberge Nicholas Flamel, and he told us to meet him here." he then added with a shrug and a frown. "What can go wrong, right? The worst case scenario is that Voldemort returns, and that I'll have to rely on my mighty luck to the get the hell out of there." he finished with a smile.

The other three chuckled, and Ron added. "Yeah, I wouldn't mind going through all of that again. I just hope we don't have to hunt for." he lowered his voice. "_horcruxes_" his voice returned to normal. "Get inside the Ministry under disguise to steal something, get inside Gringotts to, ehh. Let me think.. Oh yeah... steal something. Get away with an angry dragon, Being persecuted by death eaters, spending unending hours of hunger, bei..."

"Ron!" interrupted Hermione. "We get it, hon." she added with a single nod, while Harry and Ginny laughed.

Ron raised his hands in defense, and addressed Hermione. "I'm just stating that if he can finish the argument with two wands before returning that I'll greatly appreciate it."

Hermione just shook her head faking indignation. "You'll never change."

"What?" answered Ron looking at Harry, and then smiled joking "He's about to become an Auror, he has to bring them in. It's his responsibility."

Harry laughed and replied "Don't worry mate, I'll make sure you won't have to suffer any more days of hunger. I'll face every death eater there is if it's necessary."

Ginny's face went serious. "And if you do that, you'll have to use both wands to keep my bat bogeys aways, and not the entire Auror Department will be able to help you with that. I'm sure they have enough experience to know they have to keep away from a mad Weasley witch."

They all laughed and Harry replied. "Point taken." he turned to look at Ron. "You better avoid the museum and head for a groceries store. Considering your appetite, you better take 20 bags with undetectable extension charms on them." Harry smiled, and then shrugged while adding. "Just in case I end up in another cemetery, and Voldemort returns."

They all laughed. Harry went upstairs, while the rest left the restaurant. An anxious Ginny turned for the last time before leaving to look at Harry. He felt the stare and glanced at her while climbing the stairs, he just smiled.

The seconds passed, and Harry reached the top level.

There was a small corridor passing and archway that ended in a wall. There were no doors, and it seemed the corridor was done just for the sake of it, as it lead nowhere. At the end of the corridor, there was a small table. Harry approached it. There was a frame with text that read like a poem. At least the letters where stylish to look so. They read:

_Kisses kept will get you no where,_

_***50 ladies stand in wait,***_

_Kisses wasted will feel just empty,_

_***49 seek just to play,***_

_While one true kiss will feel immortal. _

_***Only 1 will take you away.***_

The table was full of stones of every type and color. Harry quickly set aside in his mind any rock that was not red. There were eight. He looked at the other rocks. There were a total of seven colors of seven rocks each. Only the red ones had an extra stone, so it was clear to him that he was on the correct path.

He looked at the red stones, and they were all of different shapes and textures, but only one brought back memories of his encounter with Quirrell. He picked it up, looked closely at its rough imperfections, place his right hand inside his pocket grabbing one of his wands, sighed, and then kissed it.

He was expecting the strong pull of the port-key, but what happened was something very different to what he had experienced before. He started accelerating into the gate-way in a slow but steady fashion, nothing felt wrong about it. There were no strange sensations, it was a perfectly created port-key from his point of view. One that not only was transporting him to his destination, but also one that in his opinion was considering the feelings of the user.

The speed was now very fast, but the same way as it started, it slowed down imperceptibly depositing him in another corridor that had a door in front of him.

He took a deep breath, and was about to knock, when the door opened.

A Wizard which looked to be in his thirties was standing in front of him. He smiled.

Harry smiled back, but was only able to say: "I have seen you before."

The Wizard stared at him with an even bigger smile before answering. "Yes, you have seen me before, Harry."

"Who are you?"

"I would guess that's obvious. I'm Nicholas of course."

"But..." started Harry, before being interrupted.

"But I should be an old decrepit man?"

"Well, no. I didn't mean that. I meant..."

"I'm old, Harry. Very old. But I'm old because I'm immortal. You already know all of that. Now before you get more confused. Yes, the majority know me as an old and fragile man, and only those in whom I trust, know me as I really am." explained Flamel.

In a blink of an eye, Harry stopped seeing the young man, and was now looking at an old wizard. One with the same factions as he had seen pictures of Flamel. "How? Did..." was everything Harry was able to say, before Flamel change back to his normal appearance.

"How? is not a concern right now, Harry. But to explain a little, I also use disguises from time to time. But please, come, come my boy." replied Flamel, gesturing Harry to go inside. "Do you wish a cup of tea, or something?"

"No, Mr. Flamel. I just ate, thank you."

"That you did. But please call me Nicholas."

"Err..."

"I'm old in this dimension, but we are both old in the upper realms. So you don't need to show respect." he added with a little chuckle "We are the same, and in any case, I prefer Nicholas." he finished with a smile.

Harry shrugged and said. "Sure." while he thought: '_Dimensions? Upper Realms?'_

They walked to a living room, and Flamel sat in a comfortable sofa, and motioned Harry to do the same. The room was relatively big, but nothing fancy. It looked like a common household, and not the house of a man that have had centuries to accumulate things.

Flamel looked at Harry with a passive but penetrating stare. "I would guess you are confused with all that's happened to you lately?"

Harry frown and answered. "To say it in a few words, yes."

"I'm here to help you, Harry, in anything I'm allowed to."

"Allowed to?"

"Wizard law is not the only law out there, and while it is not a law as you know it, I do follow it, otherwise I may end up harming instead of helping you. If I say that I can't answer something, it's because that particular thing is better for you to find out alone."

"Is there a reason for that?"

"Everything has a reason, Harry, and while I can answer a lot of things, there are many you'll have to walk alone, or I could destroy your current evolutionary process."

"Evolutionary process?"

"I think we are moving away from where we should be starting. Let's recap what you already know. Do you remember what Albus told you in your 'vivid' dream?"

"Yes, I saw my memories last night. But it's all very confusing, I would prefer if you could explain all of it a little slower."

"I think that's fair. So, let me start. Do you consider wizards in their sometimes chaotic emotional state to be the highest echelon of evolution? Do you think that what you see in every wizard every day is all you can ever hope of being?" asked Flamel, making a nod for Harry to answer.

"Eh? I don't know. I've never thought about that before. Now, after what Dumbledore told me, Eh... I just don't know. Maybe not? Maybe there is something more?"

"It's not a test, Harry. I just want to see where you stand."

"OK. Then. I would have to say that with what I've seen, we can grow more powerful, but we'll still be wizards."

"But you see far more than that, Harry. Are you sure that becoming a more powerful Wizard is all you can aspire to?"

"Well, I don't have anything else to compare with."

"Yes, you have your imagination. Use it. So, I ask again. Are you sure that becoming a more powerful Wizard is all you can aspire to?"

Harry just frown and shrugged. "I just don't know, Mr... Err. Nicholas. I guess there could be more."

"Why?"

"Because there are a lot of things I don't know."

"Hmm. A fair answer. But you do know that we leave on a planet with millions of species on and in it, don't you?"

Harry was starting to feel a little stressed about the questions, but before he could say anything, Flamel spoke. "You are your own master, Harry. I will only show you the way, but you'll walk the path. I won't eat an apple for you, nor make digestion for you to spoil the benefits. I will guide you on how to find that apple, and how to eat it. Nothing more. If you find that path difficult, the door is always open for you to cross it."

"But, I haven't..."

"I can see through you as if I were looking through glass, and I'm not invading your privacy, nor using spells. If you ever reach my age, you'll be able to understand a person through a simple gesture. So I know you want straight answers. I won't give them. I will only show you the way to your internal spiritual library, to the precise book, page, paragraph, sentence and word, But you are the one who will have to find it, and read it."

Flamel spoke all of that with the passiveness of a tree. He never raised his voice, nor changed his attitude, but his words conveyed a strict and final tone to the meaning.

Harry was at least thankful that he was being clear with his intentions, so he just nodded.

"So we were at: Hmm. A fair answer. But you do know that we leave on a planet with millions of species on and in it, don't you?

"Yes."

"And you know through your studies of astrology, that there are billions of stars in this galaxy?"

"Yes."

"And that those star would likely contain planets?"

"Yes."

"And while many of those planets could be similar to Earth, the majority are most likely going to be different?"

"I would guess, yes."

"Then that would suggest that if there is more life out there, that much of it would follow a different kind of evolution than what we see on Earth?"

"Probably, Eh... I would guess."

"So... If we have a planet with millions of species evolving in it, and there are billions of stars and even more planets in this galaxy, it would suggest that the entities, or species thriving on Milky Way, and in the billions of galaxies beyond it, that the number of them would be even more numerous than every grain of sand in this planet? Don't you think?"

"Err... I think it could be possible, yes."

"Good. Then we can agree that everything suggests that there are more types of life forms that we could ever imagine, right?"

"Yes." answered Harry nodding.

"OK. Now that we agree on that. Tell me. How long do we have a record of the history of humanity?"

Harry was a little confused of where Flamel was going, and he was starting to think he was a little nuts, but tried as hard as possible not to show it in any gesture, so he just answer. "I don't know. Maybe several thousand years?"

"Several? OK. Let's leave it at several. What has humanity accomplished in that time frame?"

"What do you mean?" asked Harry.

"What have you seen humanity do to better itself in that time frame. For example: They invented the wheel. They now control fire. How do you see humanity in the past, and how do you see it now."

"Err... Well, we were like animals, now we are not."

"Hmm." replied Flamel. "Sometimes animals act better than humans... At least they are more balanced. So it's not that good an answer. What else do you see? Don't look at wizards, tell me about normal humans, the ones you now call muggles. How have they evolved from tribes man to what they are now."

"Eh... they have created a lot of technology?"

"Is it that hard to answer? Can't you think about languages, writing, philosophy, mathematics, infrastructure, medicine, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera.?"

"Oh. Yes."

"So you see, in just several thousands years as you said, humanity has evolved to what we are today. I'm not saying it's better or worse, only that it has evolved. It has far better understanding of its surroundings, of its thought process, of the workings of its body, of ways of simplifying tasks, etcetera. So if just in a few thousand years, normal humans have grown from tribes men, to reaching the moon. How would you see humanity in a billion years if it doesn't destroy itself before that time comes?"

Harry's eyes went round as eggs, but before he could answer, Flamel interrupted him.

"Use your imagination, Harry."

Harry shrugged, and answered. "I would guess that in such a long time frame, everything would be possible. Maybe we would be energy beings?"

"To say the least." replied Flamel to Harry's answer. "So returning to the start. I'll ask you again. Do you consider wizards in their sometimes chaotic emotional state to be the highest echelon of evolution? Do you think that what you see in every wizard every day is all you can ever hope of being?"

"No."

"Good answer." Flamel told Harry with a smile. "So can you see that if there are millions of species in a planet, and there are probably billions of planets in the billions of solar systems in this galaxy, and there are billions of galaxies in this universe that the probability of having massive numbers of species evolving in it, is very high? And can you see that in the billions of years old universe in which we live in, that there could be millions if not billions of species that had gained levels of evolution far superior to what humans currently are in?"

"Yes."

"You can really see that?"

"Yes."

"Then I can start explaining you what Dumbledore told you." finished Flamel with a smile.

Harry smile back, and nodded.

"Thousands of years ago, and I mean thousands. This solar system was a binary one."

"Binary?" asked Harry.

"Yes, it had two Suns. The one we all know and see every day was called the yellow or white Sun. But there was another. It was called the Red Sun. Some planets orbited one, while others did the same with the other. You are with me so far?"

"Yes."

"Good. Those planets orbiting one sun belonged in a way to one civilization, while those of the other to another. But there was one planet that orbited both Suns. It was called Venus. It was not only a nice planet, but a paradise. Both civilizations had claims to this planet, and to make the story short, they ended up fighting for it. Mars, and Juno fought for its possession..."

"Mars, and Juno? Are they some type of Gods?" interrupted Harry.

"No. Mars and Juno, the planets that represented each faction. If you relate to them as Gods, it's because the Greek Mythology represented this war with different characters, and the main ones as Gods. But not, I'm talking about planets as I would talk about Earth. So, Mars and Juno fought for the possession of Venus, and when the war escalated, weapons that would make atomic weapons look like firecrackers were used between each other. The consequence was the destruction of Juno, and of the Red Sun. You are still with me?"

"Yes."

"The strength of the Yellow Sun gravity reshaped this solar system, and Juno which orbited the Red Sun is now orbiting this one."

"Which planet is it?"

"The Asteroid belt." answered Flamel.

"The asteroid belt?"

"Yes, Harry. It was completely destroyed, but the Red Sun is also among us."

"There is another Sun in this solar system?" asked Harry frowning in disbelief.

"Yes, but no longer as a Sun. The mass of that star now forms what you know as Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and the majority of the Kuiper belt."

"Kuiper belt?"

"That's not important. What is important, is that this solar system was completely affected. Every main religion in this world has something written about it."

"They do? I've never heard of that."

"What religion do you follow, Harry."

"Well, after getting into Hogwarts, I have to confess that I no longer follow any religion."

"But which do you know about?"

"Well, my uncles were Anglicans."

"OK. Then you must have heard of the Great Flood, and Noah's Ark?"

"Yes, but what does that has to do with what you are telling me?"

"The Great Flood was a consequence of the destruction of the Red Sun, and it refers to a solar system wide event, and not about the rising waters of the oceans. And Noah's Ark refers to planets being used as Arks. Noah's Ark is not a boat, but Earth itself. There are many other arks in this solar system, but they are mostly orbiting Jupiter, and Saturn."

"Eh. I don't understand."

"The insides of Earth, and many moons which are now orbiting the gas giants, were where people got refuge from the massive energies and strong gravitational forces being released in the destruction of the Red Sun."

"So you are saying. That the people and other creatures of the other planets were moved to Earth?"

"Some of them, yes. But mostly inside the planet as the surface of every planetary body of this solar system was chaotic to be on during those events. But that is not what is important to us now. What we need to focus on is on the consequences of the Red Sun's destruction to our current state of evolution."

"Is that still affecting us?"

"More than you could ever imagine, Harry."

"How?"

"The process of evolution is a very long one, if you don't want to call it infinite. Every single thing in this Universe is alive in its own way. The third dimensional evolution starts with matter: rocks, water, gases, plasma, etcetera. We grow from there to higher forms and enter the realm of what we know as plants, or plant kingdom, and then end up in animals. It's a very long process, but every one is linked to each other. Those of lesser species, evolve spiritually into higher ones. For example: Dogs, Cows, Dolphins, and several others, once they finish their evolutionary process in those forms enter that of humans. Many house hold dogs end their evolution as a dog in a human family, and when they die, their next life is started as a human. In most cases with low IQ numbers." Flamel smiled at his last comment. "But still, they are now humans."

"Now. Once an entity starts its evolution as a human, it must follow a learning process that would take him to the next stage of evolution. Normally the time needed to accomplish that was 30,000 years. That was what a normal human body could live. Not because it died, but because it was the time needed for that being to start the next stage after human."

"Then came the Red Sun. Its destruction was a calamity, but the consequences were not understood until much later. The life span of humans started slowly diminishing. The Great Wizards of the era tried everything to prologue their lives, but were unable to do so, until Hermes Trismegistus created the Great Work."

"The Great Work?"

"Before I answer that, I have to explain what happened to the human body. It used to be immortal, and it was immortal because the energies it contained were enormous, Lesser species as bacterias or viruses could not have inhabit it as the energy it contained would have destroyed them, so you see, we could not die of disease. Also our tissue metabolism was far far faster and robust. You could lose an arm, and a new one would have grown to replace it. Damaging the body was also far more difficult as our tissues were far far stronger. Still with me?"

"Yes." answered Harry, a little more interested than before.

"So what happen that we no longer have that kind of body? Some though that the energy that was no longer received from the Red Sun was seriously affecting our bodies, and they were right in way, but what was really affecting us was that this solar system was torn apart. When all of the dimensions were in a single place with the immortal body, now the dimensions are like a rainbow. They are no longer in the same place. At least what goes from the third dimension to the sixth. Still with me?"

Harry nodded.

"So we now have a mortal physical third dimensional body, a mortal astral fourth dimensional body, a mortal mental fifth dimensional body, and an immortal spiritual sixth dimensional body... I see you have a question?"

"Yes, Er... Before I lose myself, What do you mean by mortal and immortal. How can one body be immortal and the others not."

"Good question. Because your real you is the spiritual body, and because it no longer has a body in the other dimensions, and it can no longer live for 30,000 years to complete its evolution as a human, it has to make a huge effort to gather the experience needed to be able to jump to the next stage in evolution. So, a spiritual body being so far above the other bodies requires a lot of experience to be able to do so. So how does it accomplish that, it does by taking a mental, astral and physical body."

"When you are born in this world, you have already been born in the mental first, and then in the astral, and when you die, you die in the physical first then in the astral, and finally in the mental. You receive instructions from your masters at the upper dimensions, and you repeat these process of reincarnation again, again, and again, until you have reached the necessary consciousness to make the Great Work."

"So now we reach the subject of the Great Work. Hermes was the one who found a way of permanently joining all bodies so that one could continue its evolution. The Great Work is called that way, because its a process that has to be done on the four dimensions we spoke about at the same time to be effective. The alchemical process to create the philosopher stone is the physical part of the Great Work, and through it you can create a body able to resist the massive energy that the spiritual body contains. You want to ask something?"

"Yes, Does that has something to do with my energy situation?"

"Absolutely, Harry. You have a very good connection with your spiritual body because of what you did, but your physical body would be completely destroyed if the spiritual one gets in contact with it. That was what Albus was warning you about. You don't have to worry, because you are nowhere near of being prepared and ready to receive that body, but you do have to worry to call upon even an extremely low percentage of the energy of that body. If through sheer will, or a moment of big emotions, you even slightly open the door to those energies. You'll die. You are not prepared."

"Is there a way I could block that?"

"Yes, becoming evil."

"What?"

"You have that connection, because you are a creature of love, Harry. Not a creature of fear. The spiritual body is a high vibrational body. We humans call high vibrational energies: Love. If you don't want to be in contact with those energies then you must reject love."

"But I don't want to be evil."

"Thank goodness you don't." Flamel smiled. "But then that answers your question. No, you don't have a way of blocking it, and if you continued on your same path of self-sacrifice for the greater good, you'll only increase it."

"But what did I do to create that link?"

"You went to die without fear for your friends, and even for people you don't even know."

"But why did that created the link?"

"Because there isn't a better way of reaching the highest levels of vibrations, than self-sacrifice." he shook his head and added. "And I'm not saying suicide. That is the complete opposite."

"What your mother did to protect you was the same, you find yourself in this predicament because you didn't die." he smiled, and then added. "You see, Harry. A man of Knowledge, and by a man of knowledge I mean a man that seeks to improve himself, a man that is aware of its evolutionary process, has four enemies. Of them you have already defeated one."

"Which enemies?" asked, Harry.

Flamel answered, "When a man starts to learn, he never knows what he is going to find. His purpose is deficient; his intention vague. He expects rewards that never arrive, because he knows nothing of the effort required to learn. But one learns like this: little by little at the start, and then more and more. His thoughts stumbles and fall into nothingness. What one learns is never what he expects, and just like that he starts having fear."

"Knowledge is never what one expects. Every step of the learning process is a slaughter, and the fear that a man experiences starts to grow without mercy, without stopping. His purpose is transformed into a battlefield, and just like that, he has stumbled upon his first natural enemy: Fear! A terrible enemy: Treacherous and difficult to overcome. It remains concealed at every turn of the way, prowling, waiting. And if the man, terrified with its presence, runs away, his enemy will have put an end to his search."

"What happens to a man, if he runs away in fear?" asked Harry.

"Nothing, it's just that he will never learn. He will never be a man of knowledge. He will become a bully, or a coward. A harmless, scared man, but anyway, a defeated man. His first enemy would have put an end to his cravings."

"And how do you defeat this enemy?"

"You know that better than anybody else, Harry. This is the enemy you have defeated. But to address your question in an understandable way, the answer is very simple: One must not run. He must face his fear, and in its presence, he must give the next step in his learning process, and the next, and the next. He must be filled with fear, but must not stop. That's the rule! And then comes a time when his first enemy walks away. The man starts to feel sure of himself, his purpose strengthens, and learning is no longer a terrifying task. When this joyful moment comes, the man can say without hesitation that he has defeated his first natural enemy, as you have."

"Have I?" asked Harry.

"Were you afraid of facing your death at the hands of Voldemort? Did you ever hesitated when doing so?"

"No. I knew I had to do it."

"You had clarity?"

"Yes, as I never had before."

"Then you see. There was no fear."

"But I could always feel fear again, right?" stated Harry.

"No. Once a man has conquered fear, he will be free of it for the rest of his life. Because in exchange of fear, he has gained clarity. A clarity of mind that erases fear. By then, a man knows his desires; knows how to satisfy them. He can anticipate the new steps of learning, and a sharp clarity surrounds everything. The man feels that nothing is hidden, and thus he has encountered his second enemy: Clarity! That clarity of mind, so difficult to obtain, dispels fear, but also blinds. It forces the man never to doubt himself. It gives him the assurance he can do anything he pleases, for everything he sees he sees clearly. And he is courageous because he is clear, and does not stop at anything because he is clear. But all that is wrong, it's as if he saw something clear but incomplete. If the man yields to this illusion: power, he has succumbed to his second enemy and will be awkward to learn. He will hurry, when he should be patient, be patient when he should hurry. And he will fumble with learning until he winds up incapable of learning anything more."

Harry lowered his head at this words. It was clear to him that this was what he had been doing all along.

"Did this ring a bell, Harry?

Harry just nodded.

"That's because you are facing your second enemy: Clarity."

"What would happen if I'm unable to overcome this?"

"Your second enemy would just stop you cold from trying to become a man of knowledge, instead, you may turn into a buoyant warrior, or a clown. But the clarity that you have paid so dearly will never change to darkness and fear. You will be clear as long as you live, but you'll no longer learn, or yearn for nothing."

"What do I have to do to avoid being defeated?"

Flamel took a deep breath and answered. "A man facing clarity must do what he did with fear: he must defy his clarity and use it only to see, and wait patiently and measure carefully before taking other steps, he must think, above all, that his clarity is almost a mistake. And there will come a time that he'll understand that his clarity was only a point before his eyes. And thus he will overcome his second enemy, and arrive at a position where nothing can harm him anymore. This is not a mistake nor an illusion. It won't be only one point before his eyes. That is the real power."

"He will know then that the power long pursued is finally his. He can do with it what he pleases. His ally is at his command. His wish is the rule. He sees all that is around. But he has also come across his third enemy: Power!"

"I'm sorry." said Harry. "You said his ally is at his command? What ally?"

"When a man of knowledge reaches this point, he will gain an elemental ally. An ally in accord to his vibrations. Albus had a phoenix, Voldemort a snake. Both defeated clarity, and were almost unstoppable compared to normal humans and wizards. There are very few who ever defeat clarity, Harry. But as I said, that only presents a man with his third enemy: Power!"

"Power is the strongest of all enemies. Naturally, the easiest thing to do is to surrender, after all, the man is truly invincible. He commands, he begins by taking calculated risks, and ends in making rules, because he is the master of power. A man at this stage hardly notices his third enemy closing in on him. And suddenly, without knowing, he will certainly have lost the battle. His enemy will have turned him into a cruel, capricious man. That is what happened to Voldemort."

Harry nodded, and asked. "Will that man ever lose his power?"

"He will never lose his clarity or his power. A man who is defeated by power dies without really knowing how to handle it. Power is only a burden upon his fate. Such a man has no command over himself, and cannot tell when or how to use his power. Once one of these enemies overpowers a man there is nothing he can do. It is not possible, for instance, that a man who is defeated by power may see his error and mend his ways. Once a man gives in he is through. If, however, he is temporarily blinded by power, and then refuses it, his battle is still on. That means he is still trying to become a man of knowledge. A man is defeated only when he no longer tries, and abandons himself. He has to come to realize that the power he has seemingly conquered is in reality never his. He must keep himself in line at all times, handling carefully and faithfully all that he has learned. If he can see that clarity and power, without his control over himself, are worse than mistakes, he will reach a point where everything is held in check. He will know then when and how to use his power. And thus he will have defeated his third enemy as Albus did."

"The man will be, by then, at the end of his journey of learning, and almost without warning he will come upon the last of his enemies: Old age!"

"This enemy is the cruelest of all, the one he won't be able to defeat completely, but only fight away, unless he is able to aply all of his inner knowledge and complete the Great Work. If he is unable to create at least the philosopher stone to become immortal, he will be defeated. This is the time when a man has no more fears, no more impatient clarity of mind, a time when all his power is in check, but also the time when he has an unyielding desire to rest. If he gives in totally to his desire to lie down and forget, if he soothes himself in tiredness, he will have lost his last round, and his enemy will cut him down into a feeble old creature. His desire to retreat will overrule all his clarity, his power, and his knowledge. But if the man sloughs off his tiredness, and lives his fate though, he can then be called a man of knowledge, and only a man of knowledge can ever hope of defeating this enemy."

"But what if I don't want to follow this path?" asked Harry

"This is a path as you say that is forced into every human. You either have the option of being defeated by one of these enemies, and die unknowingly of what you lost, or become immortal. There is no other way."

"You are telling me that we are forced to defeat all these enemies and become immortal?"

"Yes, Harry. There is no other way for a human in this star system to resume his path in evolution. You could spend the rest of eternity in incarnation after incarnation, but unless you are able to join all your bodies in a single entity, then there is no way for you to enter the next step in evolution. You will forever be human."

"But then I'm not forced to nothing in this life. I'll still have a chance the next, right?"

"And the next, and the next, and the etcetera." replied Flamel. "But, not as Harry. Harry is just a mortal physical body. The one who gets the chance is your Spiritual or Causal body. And he-she-it is always trying to regain wholeness. What you must understand, Harry, is that we are only the horse in which it rides in this dimension. Our higher-self is always calling to us, the fact that we are not prepared to listen doesn't mean we are not bound to it."

"Well, I'm deaf. Because I've never heard him, eh she, or it." anwered Harry, joking.

"Oh! I'm afraid you are wrong, Harry."

"How so?"

"Have you ever felt remorse for something you did or were about to do?"

"Yes, many times."

"Then you are not deaf." replied Flamel with a smile. "That's what keeps us from going astray. That's what keep us in line with our spirit until the time you are able to join."

Harry frowned. "I have to be honest. That feeling of remorse has grown considerably after the battle of Hogwarts."

"And when does it come?" asked Flamel.

"Mostly when I'm doing nothing. That's one of the reasons why I try to keep myself occupied." answered Harry.

"You have a lot to learn, Harry, and one of those things is to distinguish the differences in the remorse feeling. You may think that you are feeling remorse for something you did, when it may be something you are not doing. You have to learn to understand what your higher-self is trying to tell you."

"I don't understand."

"Yes, Your spiritual body doesn't want you to waste time. It knows perfectly well when you need a rest. If you are taking vacations and are relaxing in the soft sands of a Caribean beach, you probably won't feel any remorse. But if you are just wasting your time, or exceeding yourself in those vacations you will feel it. It's only a way of saying: HEY! Start doing something! And that something is learning. It will come a time when you'll have sufficient knowledge that you'll be able to start working in what your higher-self needs you to work in: The Great Work."

Harry nodded slowly, and then said. "I see." he remained silent for a moment before asking. "So what do I do now? How do I proceed?"

"Now is time for you to leave and meditate of what I said."

"But I have a lot of questions. I'll ..."

Flamel raised his hand. "There will be time, my impatient boy. A lot of time. But for now it's better for you to assimilate, and meditate what I said."

"But I don't have much time left here in France. I'm starting Auror training in a few weeks, and I'm then heading to Hogwarts. I would definitely want to ask you some questions before I leave. Especially related to my energy condition while spell casting."

Flamel smiled again. "I know." he then pointed at Harry's hand, who was still holding the port-key philosopher stone. "If you kiss it again, it will take you back to where you kissed it first. Take it with you, and any time you need to contact me again, you just need to kiss it wherever you are, and it will bring you here. You kiss it again, and it will bring you back to where you were, either it be Hogwarts, your House or wherever you are."

"But Hogwarts is..." started Harry, before being interrupted.

"Wherever you are, Harry. The protective spells of Hogwarts can not stop this port-key." Flamel stood and smiled, and Harry knew his time was up.

Harry stood, and asked while walking to the door. "Can you at least tell me, why is it that I've seen you before?"

Flamel smiled again, and shook his head slightly. "Next time probably. You now need to focus on what I said."

"OK." answered Harry, and then looked at the stone. "How will I know you are not busy when I kiss the stone? I wouldn't want to interreput something important, or arrive when you are sleeping. Is there another way to contact you?"

"I never sleep, so you won't find me sleeping." He smiled again, and said. "But if for some reason, you kiss the stone and nothing happens, then I'm not available, or you are not yet ready for the next step."

Harry smiled at that. They both reached the door, and Harry walked outside, and turned to look at Flamel one last time before leaving. "Thanks a lot, Nicholas."

"I'm here to help, Harry."

Harry was about to kiss the stone, when Flamel spoke again. "I'll only ask that you keep this between ourselves. I know that you may want to share your experience, and even your memories, but your friends are not yet prepared for this. If the times comes when they are, I'll let you know."

Harry nodded, and Flamel smiled.

The stone received a kiss, and Harry was brought back to the corridor above the restaurant. He stood still watching the stones surrounding the framed poem in deep thought, before he turned around, and walked downstairs to wait for Ginny, Hermione and Ron.

He knew that a new path had opened for him, but new nothing of what would come his way if he followed it. Only time would tell, but for know he felt a powerful soothing fire burn inside him, as if something was telling him that he was on the right path.

* * *

**Author's notes:**

- While I'm trying to use my words in expressing what I've read about in the books I mentioned in the prologue, which will be my source for Flamel's teachings, the part of the four enemies of the man of knowledge were almost a copy paste. I hope the author doesn't sue me, but I didn't want to break the meaning of his words by changing the wording. I do appologise to him, and can only say that it's with the best intentions. :)

- Everything that Flamel says on this chapter and the ones that follow would be based on real life teachings on the currents I mentioned in the prologue. I hope you find them as interesting as I do.

- Special thanks to my beta Hyperlily.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note:**

-Special thanks to HyperLily for helping correct this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter Four**

**Newton St Cyres.**

**August 17, 1998**

A red bolt streamed through the air and struck Ginny's shield. At first, it looked as if it had held, but she was already exhausted, and the protective spell fizzled out letting the red bolt hit her square centered in the chest. Her eyes shut close, and she dropped with the dead weight of a sack of potatoes. The breaking sound of many dried branches accompanied the resounding thud of Ginny's unconscious fall.

Ron's eyes went round, and he redoubled his efforts. His spells were flying away as if he had been firing an automatic weapon, but that lasted just a second as he had to dodge the spells flying back at him. From his side, and behind a tree, Hermione was doing the same.

A relentless stream of spells struck the tree in which she was taking cover, and that forced her to stop shooting back. That small time frame was the doom for Ron, as his opponent now concentrated all of his effort in him. He tried desperately to seek cover behind another three of the dense forest, but several spells passed between it and him. His shield held strong, but it only took a few more hits, and Ron followed the same fate as Ginny.

Hermione fired some spells without watching. She lean out to take a look, and felt something touching her leg. She turned to see an ugly tree like creature making its way to her. It was already stretching out to hold her. Its branch like arms grasping her leg. Hermione's self-preservation instincts kicked in. She moved away of the creature as fast as she could firing a reducto spell at it with the obvious consequences, but she realized she was out of cover when her wand flew away. Two other creatures sprouted from the fallen tree branches and moved fast to hold her still. She just screamed in panic with the touch of the grotesque beings.

From the other side there was only chuckling. "I guess making them ugly worked. They spook you out of cover."

"Harry! Get them away from me!" yelled Hermione. Her eyes were closed trying to avoid paying attention to the feeling of being held by those creatures.

The sound of branches falling to the ground, was Harry transfigurating the creatures back to what they were.

Hermione's wand flew back at her, while Harry walked towards Ron and Ginny enervating them.

"You stunned me? What happen? Who won?" was all Ginny was able to say, and then repeated. "You stunned me?"

"Who do you think won?" replied a frustrated Ron, standing up and brushing the leaves out of his clothes.

Ginny just didn't take her eyes from Harry, and repeated herself with a faked murderous face. "You stunned me?"

Harry knew he was in trouble, but was fast to answer in his defense. "I'm sorry Gin, but you were three. I had to do something to stop you. None of you were holding back..."

"You could have disarmed me." interrupted Ginny.

"Well, you know that people identify me with the expelliarmus spell. I'm trying to use different spells all the time, so that it makes it more difficult for an opponent to learn to fight me."

In an unusual humorous move from Hermione, she said unable to hide a smile. "You did disarm me," and then with a mischievous smile added nodding toward Ginny fueling her faked aggression. "while you stunned her."

"You disarmed her? Using the spell you don't want to be identified with? And you stunned me?"

Harry's eyes instinctively went to egg configuration. "Eh..." was the only thing he was able to say.

A red bolt flew from Ginny's wand striking a shield. Harry was barely able to cast a protego spell "I'll teach you to treat a witch, and you better not fire back, Potter, or you can kiss my kisses good-bye."

A Bat-Boggey hex flew next, But Harry was fast to cast a counter course. "Come on, Gin. You said you were going to help us train..."

"That doesn't mean you can disregard the rules in girl-friend treatment!" she answered, without being able to hide a smile, while at the same time several different spells struck Harry's shield.

Harry apparated a few meters away to avoid another volley, and soon the two were apparating all over the place, Ginny pursuing Harry to try to stun him. The laughs from both of them were heard by Ron and Hermione, but soon everything went quiet after a nervous scream.

"What happened? Where are they?" asked Hermione.

"Dunno." replied Ron

A few meters away, and blocked by a tree, Harry had apparated behind Ginny, and had grabbed her while securing her wand. Ginny released a nervous scream, but Harry turned her and pulled her close. The silence was due to the fact that both of them were now kissing.

Hermione casted a human detection charm, and she and Ron could see Harry and Ginny's kissing silhouette behind a tree. They both smiled, but both had tired faces on them, as they had spent almost the entire morning dueling.

Ron was the first to speak. "I'm hungry, and tired. Let's leave these two..." but he was unable to finish when Harry and Ginny could be seen walking towards them holding hands.

Hermione spoke with a stronger voice so that Harry and Ginny could hear. "What do you say if we call it a day." and she then added with rounding eyes. "Ron is hungry."

"Sure. Let's go." replied Harry, and then added. "See you at the Burrow." and with that said, Harry and Ginny disapparated with a bang.

Ron and Hermione arrived at the Burrow a few seconds behind Harry and Ginny. They were waiting for them for the walk back to the house.

"So!" said Ron out loud to get everyones attention. "You still think I'm ready for Auror examination after the thrashing Harry has been giving me."

"US." countered Hermione. "Thrashing he's been giving US."

Ron looked sideways to Hermione and said. "OK. Yes, us, but I'm the one facing the examinations."

"Look, Ron." Said Ginny from the other side. "We have fought death eaters," and then added with a proud tone "and none of them fought like Harry. So, I can tell you are good for examination. In the worst case, you may not be able to fight an Auror and win, but I can assure you that you'll stand above the rest." she paused, and added with a smile. "Well, above the rest not including Harry."

Harry had a half smile, and said while blushing from Ginny's comment. "You are doing far better, mate"

"Yeah, you always say that, Harry, but I'm still unable to beat you."

"That's the problem." replied Harry.

"What? That I'm unable to beat you? I already knew that."

"No. The problem is that you are fighting for the outcome, and the possibility of being defeated hampers your abilities. If you stop worrying that you'll win, then you'll start doing far better."

"If I stop worrying if I'll win, I could get defeated, and in the case of a Death Eater, I'll be dead." countered Ron.

"As I said, that's the problem."

"What? Trying to stay alive is the problem?"

"Well, I didn't want to make it sound that way, but yes. I already know the possible consequences of a battle, and one of them is being defeated and killed. So, I no longer pay attention to that, and just do my best." replied Harry, he remembered what Flamel told him about the enemies of a man of knowledge, and added. "I know now that I fight without fear of the outcome, and I'm able to fight with clarity, and that gives me a clear picture of were I stand. I no longer have fear of acknowledging that there could be someone better, and if I clearly understand that I can't defeat an opponent, I would no longer face him in a way I know he can defeat me, so I would seek a new way of dealing with him. Everybody, has strengths and weaknesses. If I know I can't defeat someone strengths, I'll try to uncover the weaknesses and exploit them."

Hermione looked at Harry with the stunned face of hearing a true Master for the first time, and said. "Harry is right, Ron." she paused and then added. "We have been trying to fight him head on, and he is clearly superior to us in that way. He has more energy making his spells stronger, he can dual-wield allowing him to protect himself while fighting back, he also has the elder wand, and I have seen his face while fighting him, I see no fear in his eyes, and I see how he dodges spells with the passiveness of a baby."

Harry chuckled at the last comment. "Yeah, its like a see things in slow motion." but then added looking at Hermione. "You just broke me down into component part," he smiled and added. "but you are right." He turn to Ron, and said. "We didn't fight Voldemort head on. Dueling was one of his strengths. We would have been defeated. We fought his weaknesses, We took his Horcruxes out, and we then fought his pride. The last encounter with him was not a dueling victory, but a mental one. In the woods, he never knew he was killing the last Horcrux when he attack me, and in the last fight, he didn't know that the wand he carried was only loyal to me. We found his weaknesses, and exploited them. That's what I'll do for now on against any opponent, and that is what you should do too."

"And what do I have to do to find your weaknesses?" asked Ron.

"What I can tell you, is that the weaknesses I know about me, I try to protect. It is the weaknesses I don't know about me that you should exploit, if you are unable to bring down the defenses I placed for the weaknesses I know about."

"Which weaknesses do you have?"

"Well, for starters, my body is susceptible to a stunning spell. I protect it with a protego charm. If you are unable to bypass my shield, then you should seek another way."

"Which one?"

"I don't know." answered Harry, shrugging. "But when you find it, try to exploit it fast, because I'll learn of that weakness, and I'll try to protect it, or make it a strength. Come on, Ron. You know quite well all of this. You always thrash me on chess, and you know a peon can defeat a queen, so anyone can defeat anyone if the correct strategy is applied, right?"

Ron frowned. "I didn't see it that way. You are right. But then don't expect me to fight you fair."

"Don't expect our fights as Aurors to be fair, mate. If a death eater has a chance to bring a house in our heads while trying to flee, I can bet you he will."

Ron just looked to the ground for a second before answering. "Yeah, you are right."

* * *

The days passed, and the week before Auror examination arrived, was spent with duel after duel. Harry's three opponents had used every strategy on their hands, they had even designed ways to defeat Harry working as a team, and while they were unable to defeat him, they were at least able to fight him to a stand still. Everyone had gotten far better, and Ron was more optimistic about his chances.

Harry had learned not only to flow while casting two spells at the same time, but had learned a lot about fighting several opponents at once. His energy control was far better, and that made his spells far stronger. He still had to devote a lot of concentration while dual-wielding, specially when casting more complex spells, but he had become a master while doing the same with simpler ones.

The night before the examination, Harry made an attempt to see Flamel. He had kissed the philosopher stone before with no results, but that night, he was pulled away towards France.

He arrived at Flamel's corridor, and didn't have to wait when the door opened.

"Hi, Harry."

"Hello, Mr... Eh Nicholas."

"Come in, please."

"Thanks." replied Harry, and walked inside the house, but to his surprise, everything was different. Last time, it was a comfortable small house. Now, it looked like a big gymnasium.

"Do you like it?"

"Err! Yes. How did you change it? Is your house like the room of requirements?"

"Room of requirements?" asked Flamel smiling.

"Oh! Sorry. It's a room in Hogwarts that changes to the requirements of the one who is about to enter it."

"Hmm! Yes, something similar, or at least I imagine they used a similar charm to do it."

Harry smiled. "Cool! I want to learn that spell."

Flamel chuckled. "All in due time, my boy. Today, I'm going to teach you how to control energy outbursts. We don't want you to burn out tomorrow. Do we?"

"How …?" Harry was about to ask, but he knew better, so he said. "I'm normally behind wards. Is there a spell that can bypass them so that you can keep up with me?"

"Not a spell, but yes," answered Flamel, and then added with a mischievous smile. "If I want to check what my apprentice is up to, I can do that."

"How?"

"It's not the time for questions. We'll have a lot of time another day, but today, you need to learn some things."

"Couldn't you just answer this question. Even if it's only this one?"

"You won't understand, Harry."

"Try me."

Flamel smiled. "Why do you need to know now. I promise I'll tell you later."

"Because I don't feel much confidence to work with someone who is spying on me."

"But you are here. I didn't kiss the stone for you. You came with your own free will."

"Yes, but I didn't know you were spying on me."

Flamel smile. "Do parents spy on their small children, or do they seek only to protect them from their innocence?"

"I..." Harry was about to answer, but Flamel interrupted him.

"Don't feel bad if I compared you to a small child, Harry, because that is who you are to me. The rest of the people that you know, are as if they haven't even been born. You are stepping into realms in which you have little knowledge of, and if they are approached without proper care, they'll easily put an end to your existence."

"I give you my word that I'll answer every question I'm allowed to answer, and this I can answer, but it's not the time yet. Have a little patience."

Harry just nodded.

"OK." replied Flamel to Harry's nod. "I have to ask for your permission, Harry."

"What permission?"

"I need to do some things that you won't like."

"Which things?"

"I need to break you."

"What?"

"I need to break the control you have over yourself. I need to make you explode."

"Explode? Why?"

"Because otherwise, you won't experience the rush of energy required to burn yourself up. If I can't put you in that position, I can't teach you how to control it."

"Can't we do it differently?"

"Are you afraid?"

"I thought you said I had already defeated that enemy. That I'll never have to worry about it anymore."

"That's why I'm asking. Are you afraid?"

"No, I'm not, but that doesn't mean I'd like you to break me."

"I won't harm you. You will feel many types of pain. But I give you my word, you won't be harmed."

Harry sighed. "I have been training lately, and I have learned how to control it."

"You haven't been placed in a breaking position. But tomorrow you'll be forced into one."

"What do you mean?"

"There are things I can't explain to you now. Just trust me."

"No! What do you mean that'll be forced into one."

"I can't tell you. I'm already exceeding my allowances by mentioning that. You'll understand tomorrow. I only need you to be able to control your energy."

"But..."

"No, buts." interrupted Flamel, and with the same passiveness he'd always spoken with, he added. "I won't force you, but you have to decide. You either stay to train, or you leave."

Harry sighed, "You are giving me very little options here, but as you said, I'm no longer afraid, and I'm not afraid of what tomorrow brings to me. If what I'll be forced tomorrow is the reason you need to train me, or better said, break me, then there is no reason for training."

"Fair answer. Then you can return to your house, and we'll continue with your training another day," Flamel smiled with a frown "If there is another day, and I don't say this as a way making you do things for 'fear' of what is to come. I know you are no longer afraid. I'm telling you this so that you are prepared, so that you are able to control things that you don't know about. Doing things for fear of something is completely different than doing things for preparing for what could come."

"People normally study for a school test for fear of flunking the subject, but as they grow, they study for actually learning the subject, and for knowing that they are prepared to face the matters contained in it. If I seek to break you, it's because I know you need to be prepared, but it's your decision."

Harry was left in deep thought after what Flamel had said, and finally nodded. "OK. Let's do this."

"Once we start, there is no way back. Do you understand this?"

Harry sighed again, and answered. "Yes, I do."

"Then let's start."

The door closed behind them, and Flamel disapparated not even with a bang. He just wasn't there, but then reappeared on the other side of the big room, and without a wand, spell after spell left his hands and in some cases his body, and headed towards Harry. Spells that he had never seen before, and that he didn't know how to defend against.

The elder wand was the first out of his pocket, and a strong protego charm was able to barely deflect the first of Flamel's spells, but it was clear to Harry, that if he stayed put, he wouldn't be able to stop another, so he started apparating inside the room, firing spells at Flamel, and barely protecting himself from his onslaught.

The fight started slow, but Flamel immediately started to intensify the strengths of his attacks. It was something that Harry had never seen before. Flamel was not only attacking him non verbally, but also wandless, but still able to cast more than one spell at a time, and from both hands. In one case his two hands released a spell at the same time as he was clearly controlling elements with his mind. All of this with the same expression as always. Completely passive.

Harry had never seen this, not with Dumbledore or Voldemort, and he knew right there, that what Flamel had spoken before was not cheap talk. He meant everything about Harry being like a child, and about Harry not even having a clue of what was up ahead the road. He remembered what he told Ron. That from now on, he'll try to fight his enemies weaknesses, but he just couldn't find any. He just didn't understand the spells he was seeing, and the fact that Flamel was not strained at all, made him feel helpless against the immortal Wizard.

A few seconds later, Harry was on the floor wandless.

"Again!" shouted Flamel from the other side. "Concentrate, and let yourself flow. Stop thinking."

Another attack, and Harry was blown against the wall, and then to the floor.

He stood up, and another attack mauled him with such intensity that he had no way of protecting himself from it.

Almost an hour passed, and after several of these single sided battles, Harry was exhausted and in pain. His hands shacked, but he was still able to control his energy. His anger was building up inside him out of pure impotence, and there were moments, in which he wanted to call upon everything he had available to throw at Flamel, but after a few thrashings, and after understanding he had no chance against him, he calmed down, and tried his best to fight him.

There was no anger inside him, and when he though he was better able to fight Flamel, the immortal wizard stopped and said. "So, you have controlled your pride. That's something that its seems we won't have to worry about, maybe tomorrow you won't have a problem, but you haven't yet faced the feeling of receiving the amount of energy that will destroy you, and I can't teach you to control it if it doesn't come. There is one more thing I can do to force that. Are you willing?"

"What thing?"

"If I tell you, it won't work, as your mind will be prepared." Flamel said, and then asked again. "Are you willing?"

Harry sighed, and nodded.

Flamel didn't waste time, he directed both of his hands to one side of the room, and something began to appear. It was like an oblong portal with a clear human body inside it. Once the shimmering on the surface of the portal vanished, Harry tensed up.

Ginny was levitating in pajamas, and clearly asleep. She slowly opened her eyes, and looked at Harry and said. "Harry?"

Flamel turned to Harry, and spoke. "I'm sorry I have to do this, but it's the only way."

Nicholas moved one of his hands, and the portal in which Ginny was still in, rushed towards the wall slamming her into it. Ginny screamed at the same time as several protrusions from the wall grew like arms to hold her on several places.

"If you don't defeat me, I will literary break her."

"Stop!" said Harry

A crushing sound was heard at the same time as Ginny screamed in agony. Her left and right arms were crushed flat into the wall by the arm like holders. The broken bones tore Ginny's skin and a constant flow of blood dropped into the floor. The expression of Ginny's face was all Harry needed to know of what she was going through.

"Please, stop!" Harry shouted, but didn't know what to do. A rush of energy flowed inside him, and everything was clear, and he was seeing things in slow motion as he always did in this circumstances, but that hadn't help him in the previous encounters with Flamel.

There was no fear in him. He understood perfectly well what was happening, and knew once more what he had to do. Flamel wanted him to explode, and that was what he was going to do. He saw everything with clarity. He had no fear in losing Ginny, as there was no more fear inside him, but he had a clear understanding that there wasn't anyone he loved more. He saw the options, and knew he couldn't stop what was happening to her unless he stopped a determined Flamel, and without a second though, he rushed into action.

Powerful spells flew from his wands one after the other, spells that Flamel deflected with ease. He tried to transfigure the holding arms restraining Ginny, but nothing happened. He threw every spell he knew about to Flamel.

He improvised, and used elements instead of spells. Water flew from one of his wands, while he froze it with the other, but the water didn't even reach Flamel, as he seemed to have every counter spell to his. If he would have been fighting Voldemort, he was sure he would have been giving him a hell of a fight, but with Flamel, it was as if he wasn't even there.

The breaking sound of more bones. This time from Ginny's legs, and her screams of agony, fueled Harry's resolve, but even with all of his effort, and felling the strain in his arms with the intensity the energy was flowing through him, he was still unable to reach his limit. He had trained so much this past month, that a subconscious limit had inadvertently been set inside him. He felt that every time he was going to pass the point of no return, that he immediately, and without wanting pulled back at the last second.

But then the unthinkable happened.

Flamel's face turned into one of resolve. He had the look of someone in emotional pain. The first time Harry had seen him that way, but what really troubled him, was that resolve in his face, and before he could do anything, the sound of more broken bones, more screams, one last broken bone, and then silence.

Ginny laid on the floor dead. Harry was stupefied and with no clue as to how Flamel had reached this point. There was no turning back for him. Ginny's broken body didn't break Harry in grief. The feeling of loss, and despair was not to appear at that moment. Too much adrenalin flowed through his body, but the understanding of losing Ginny gave the necessary will for him to break the last barrier.

He turned to look at Flamel with the passiveness of someone who knew there was nothing to do but finish what had been started. Tears, or grief, or anger, or hatred weren't going to bring Ginny back. With a calmness he had never experienced before, he felt his entire body. His focus was on Flamel, and his body answered his will. A rush of an extremely calming and soothing heat made its way into him, and then everything stopped.

"Now! Calm yourself. This is it. That feeling of calmness, of being caress by something, that feeling of wholeness, is what you need to control." The voice of Flamel spoke in his mind.

He could see him in front of him completely static. It seemed as if time had stopped, but still Harry could answer, and said. "You killed her, and now there is only one option for us. You either kill me, or I'll kill you."

The calmed voice of Flame spoke again. "Look at her."

Harry was unable to move his body. He was stopped in time as Flamel was, but from the ground, the figure of Ginny stood up with no injury, waved at him, and then vanished. "It was only an illusion, Harry. I would never harm a living creature, not even an ant. I'm still oblivious as to how you believed I was able of such an act, but I'm thankful that you did. Now, let's return to the real thing, and let's forget about the illusions. Your energy channels are opened wide. Those feelings you have are so good, that it would be impossible for a normal person to resist."

Time started to advance but at an even slower pace than Harry was used to while fighting. The soothing or caressing feeling was so good that Harry didn't want it to stop."

"Harry, you need to stop it. I know that what you feel is extremely good. I have felt it. It's way beyond the best of views, the best of smells, the best of tastes, the best everyone of your senses have ever experienced. It is even better than an unending orgasm, if you have ever felt one. But it doesn't matter how good it is. Your body is not prepared for that, and if you don't stop, you'll die, and that is no illusion. I can't prevent that. You must do it by yourself."

But the joy he was felling, summed to the joy of knowing Ginny was OK, was not helping him at all, and the heat was increasing in intensity.

"POTTER!" shouted Flamel "Think of Ginny. Think of what she'll feel if you die. Stop it now!"

Harry saw Ginny's image in his mind, and redouble his effort to control it. He remembered what he needed to do to cast a Patronus charm, and he did the opposite. He though of Ginny dying, of every bad experience he had had in the past, and slowly, the wonderful sensations he was felling started to go away.

Flamel just stood watching Harry, and then frown. "You are good, Potter. Your emotional control is far better than I thought. Now you know what you need to avoid until your body is prepared. It doesn't matter how good it is, if you are not prepared, it will kill you. You just felt a glimpse of high dimensional energies. If you would have waited a little longer, it would have become more and more difficult as the time passed."

Harry answered without much emotion. "I have had a lot of problems with my emotions. I had rushed things because of them that I have forced myself this past month to train to control it, but controlling my flow of energy is what has helped me most in doing so." he then sighed. "What I don't understand is how you were able to do what you did. I don't know how to call that, but it was one of the cruelest things I have ever seen. I didn't even see Voldemort do things like that."

Flamel nodded. "I'm not proud of that, but I'm proud that it helped you learn. I had the advantage of knowing it was faked, but I knew what you were felling. I told you I needed to break you, and I did, even if you handled everything as a Master. You are great inside, Harry, and I'm honored I was given the opportunity to guide you in your path to ascension. I can tell you now, after teaching you what you just learned, that I'm incapable of harming anyone. I did harm you emotionally, but with your permission, and with a very important purpose. I hope you can forgive me."

Harry nodded. "You did it for good, and for teaching me, I'm very thankful. I knew you were trying to break me, but I never though you'll use Ginny. Guess it never occurred to me that you could create such illusions. How did you do that? Was the fighting also an illusion?"

Flamel laughed. "That is something you'll learn in time, I have had centuries. The fighting on the other hand, was no illusion, but that is something you'll also learn in time."

"Why didn't you help in the fight against Voldemort. We could have used your help. Maybe Dumbledore would have still been alive. Why didn't you?"

"If Tom would have attacked me, I would have fought, and he would have been defeated, but not killed. I am no British Auror, nor do I have the intention of being one. It will sound arrogant, but I have other concerns. Concerns that will soon be yours too."

"But so many people suffered. So many people died. You could have done something."

"I'm not the only immortal, Harry, and there are laws we have to abide to. Laws that while not strict as yours, are laws that we willingly support and follow. I though I had already explained the reality of death, and you should know it's part of our evolutionary experience."

"No, I don't remember that."

"Yes you do. I told you that your Casual body is immortal, and it is that body which requires to gain enough knowledge to ascend to the next plane of existence, to our next evolutionary path. Death of the mortal body is just the end of the learning process of a single incarnation. You can have as many as you want, and the emotional pain people suffer with lost ones, is just a mental illusion."

"How so?"

"How so, what?"

"How so it's a mental illusion? I understand now the rest. If everything you are saying is true, then death is of no consequence, but how is suffering a mental illusion."

"Because it's your own decision. You can decide to suffer, or you can decide to move forward. You always have a choice, and that is a mental choice. The same way you can decide to drop to the floor and cry yourself out in an emotional break down, you can also decide in your mind that it serves no purpose, and that you need to live with it. The decision is an illusion, the consequence of the decision is not."

Harry frowned. "I didn't get that."

"Let me give you an example. Let's say you accidentally fired a gun, and killed a person. A police officer sees you, and you panic and run. Your mind thinks that it's the end for you that you'll spend the rest of your life in prison, so your mind presents you with choices and outcomes. Run, and if you are able to escape, you may enjoy freedom and the opportunity to redeem yourself, or stop and accept the consequences. You decided to run, but the policeman calls for backup, and you are surrounded, so again the choices: Let yourself get caught, or avoid leaving in prison by shooting yourself. You made your choice, and place a bullet in your head. The End."

"So you see, you had options, everyone as real as your mind wanted to believe, but every decision taken became a reality. Your mind never knew there was a camera which saw the whole thing, and that could have absolve you of a worst case scenario, so with no faith you took the only path available in your mind. The same applies to everything, if someone close to you dies, you have the decision to break apart, and never recover from your depression, or understand that all of that is in your mind, and move forward."

"Let me give you an easier example. Let's say Ginny dumps you. How would you feel?"

"Bad."

Flamel chuckled to Harry's simple answer. "Just bad?"

"Well, terrible. I really love her."

"But you were happy before meeting her, right?"

"Eh, yes."

"So, if you were happy before meeting her, before she represented anything important in your life, why can't you be the same after her. If you were happy without her, then it means it's not a basic thing for you, and that you can perfectly be well without her. It's all in your mind."

Harry sighed. "I guess you are right." Harry kept on thinking, and then asked "So you have never harmed a thing?"

Flamel chuckled. "I never said that. I said that I'm now incapable of harming anyone. I also went through a lot before becoming immortal, and I did things that I'm not proud of, but not now. I will defend myself, but it won't start with me, but I'll definitely end it if it's required."

Harry chuckled in return. "Then, I'm incapable of harming anyone too. I just answer an aggression."

Flamel frown. "I'm afraid it's not that simple. When I said anyone, I meant every single living being. When you eat, you are responsible for what happen to the thing you ate. If you ate a chicken, then a chicken had to die for you to eat it. I don't do that."

"Oh! You are a vegetarian."

"Hmm. Close, but no. Every single living being includes vegetables. I don't even kill them." Flamel took a deep breath before continuing. "I do have an advantage. I don't require anything else than air and water. I can eat things, but it is not required. You'll understand that in the future, but let me explain by mentioning how the Indians catalog one's way of eating. They call the eating habits: Gunas. There are three. Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas."

"It is a very deep subject that could be taught another time, but to make things simple. Tamas includes food acquired by killing, and that includes both animals and vegetables. Rajas includes food that caused pain or is not pure, and Sattva includes only uncontaminated food that should not spread evil or disease in the world. On the contrary its presence must purify the surroundings, like air and water."

"Why then do you serve meat in your restaurant?"

"Well, first, it's not my restaurant. It ceased to be a long time ago. But a very trusted friend of mine manages it. He is also a Wizard, albeit not immortal, nor knowing or seeking anything about it. He is a muggle from my perspective. A common Wizard." Flamel chuckled. "What I did taught him, was a way of transfiguring Sattvic or Rajasic food into different presentations. So the meat you ate in that restaurant could possible have originated from an apple. Only he knows."

"Oh!" was everything Harry could say.

"We are diverting from our lesson. The short answer is: I don't hurt anyone anymore, But let's continue to what you came here today. Shall we?"

Harry straighten himself, and answered. "Yes."

"You are a very able fighter, Harry. You can also add that you have far more energy than normal Witches and Wizards, and that you can wield two wands. I know that you'll want to say that nothing of that helped you against me, but I'm not a normal Wizard, nor is my wife. We not only have access to far higher knowledge and energy than you do, but we also had far more years to master them. I'm sure that given enough time, you'll become far more powerful than me. I know that, because at your age, I wasn't able to do the things that you do, nor did I had the energy you now have."

"But enough of that. Tomorrow you'll be tested. I have seen Auror examinations. It was long ago, but things don't tend to change much in the British Ministry of Magic. Well, maybe I should say in every ministry of Magic."

"The thing is, that you are a celebrity, and even though you are everything I said earlier, and that you shouldn't have a problem facing an experienced Auror, I'm sure that because of being Harry Potter, they'll try to make your experience a little special. Auror tests are incremental. If you pass one, they'll increase the test in a second one. So if you defeat an experienced Auror, you'll surely face two. There have been very few new entries able of such a feat, and none able to defeat two at the same time. This is more of a pride thing for the Aurors. They'll make sure you face the toughest one from starters, and believe me when I tell you that they won't like you defeating two. They won't want the word to spread that you were the first to do so, or that Aurors are easily defeat-able. There's a reason they are consider the best of the best."

"That is what worried me. If you strain yourself by facing two Aurors, you could call upon that which would kill you. Now I'm confident that you won't. But if it's necessary for you to be defeated, then seek that option Harry, and don't risk it."

Harry just nodded.

"I have seen you fight today, and know you won't have a problem tomorrow. But keep the thought in mind, just in case. Anyway, I'll be there tomorrow watching."

"You'll be there? What do you mean?"

"Tomorrow is a special occasion. Normally, family members and friends are allowed to attend. That is normally done to encourage others to join, as having members from the same family is always better for the Aurors, as trust is one of the most important things in that profession. But tomorrow, the media and major representatives of the Ministry of magic will also attend."

"Why?" asked Harry, clearly not pleased.

Flamel chuckled. "I would like to think that that is obvious, but if you are unable to decipher the mystery, then I have to say that is because of you."

"But why? I don't want for the papers to publish what I do or do not. I think I have had enough of that. I thought Shacklebolt would understand that."

"Oh my dear boy. There are things you still don't understand, do you? There are mainly two reasons for them to do that. One, if the mighty Harry Potter who defeated Voldemort is defeated in his first fight against an Auror, then the trust on the Aurors will be increased, but if again, the mighty Harry Potter manages to defeat an Auror, or even maybe two, people would feel safe by the fact that Harry Potter is now protecting them. So you see, either way the Auror department and the Ministry wins. But if I have to add something more, then I would say that the Minister of Magic is now praying for you to defeat a zillion Aurors at the same time."

Harry just stood flabbergasted by what Flamel said. He knew he was right, but it didn't make it easy to swallow.

"I can tell you Harry that the Minister of Magic will rely greatly on you to increase the image of the Ministry. They need the hero of the war, even if you don't want that title, to be there for every witch and wizard. Don't be surprised if you end up leading the Aurors in a few years time."

"I know, but I still don't like the idea of reporters being there."

"Remember that is only an illusion of your mind."

"How come the reporters are an illusion?"

Flamel chuckled. "Not the reporters. The fact that you don't like the idea of them being there. Remember you always have a choice. Always try to look at the bright side of things, no matter how small they are, and always reject the negative side, no matter how big it is. Don't bother about them. They play their role. Let them be. In the end they might do more good than wrong."

"It's easy for you to say that. You have many years of wisdom on your shoulders."

"Remember that you have the same wisdom and more, if you learn to hear your supreme being."

"Supreme being?"

"Or Superior being, or you Causal body, your immortal self, your inner Master. Whatever you want to call it. He, she, it is very real. Far more real than what we consider reality. Just listen, and learn to flow with him."

"I think that is something you'll need to teach me some other time." said Harry, frowning.

"O course I will. Now, you need to rest. You are still not able to stay awake for eternity, and you need your energy for tomorrow. Time to go, Harry."

Harry nodded. "Thanks a lot, Nicholas. See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow, Harry, and if you need anything, just think out loud, and I'll be in your mind as I was today."

"You can do that?"

"And far more things. Things that in time you'll also be able to do. But ask me another time, and I'll teach you something about higher dimensional magic."

Harry nodded again. "Thanks a lot."

The two finished their good byes, and Harry return to the burrow with a kiss on the stone.

* * *

The next day, Harry was the first one up. He had arrived late, but as always, only a few hours at the most were necessary for him to feel rested. He waited for the rest by helping Mrs. Weasley to prepare breakfast, which they all had a few minutes later.

"Dad. Is it true what Harry is saying?" asked Ron a little stressed.

"Where did you hear that Harry?" asked Mr. Weasley.

"A friend told me. But he asked me not to say who." Answered Harry.

Mr. Weasley looked at Harry with an intriguing face, but that face quickly vanished. "I understand, Harry." He then turned to Ron, and said. "Yes, Son. There are going to be several reporters, and every head of department, plus any other high ranking officials."

"Why? I'm nervous as it is. I thought that only our family was allowed, and now every one will know if I fail miserably. I'll be the laughingstock."

"We'll be alright, mate." said an encouraging Harry.

"Yes, honey. You'll be alright. As Harry always says: Let your fear flow. Don't let it stun you, just let it flow." added Hermione.

"Easy for you to say. You won't have Mr. Fear running circles inside you, while an Auror does the same from the outside."

Hermione smiled, and replied. "Nobody else on that examination has more experience in dueling than you and Harry. I'm sure that once you are in action, you'll focus and forget about everything else. I already feel sorry for the Auror that has to face you.

"Yeah, you are right about that. No one has more experience in dueling than Harry and me of everyone trying for Auror. But there is the little fact that the Aurors do have far more experience than Harry and me, together."

"Just keep them off balance, mate. Don't do what they expect. Try to do everything out of the box." said Harry

"The important thing, son, is that you show that you are capable as an Auror. No one expects a new entry to defeat an experienced Auror. Everything will be explained to you in the Ministry. But if you are able to hold for a minute, you won't need to make the other examinations." added Mr. Weasley.

"What do you mean, Dad?" asked Ginny.

"The most important thing for an Auror is his ability to duel. If they are not good at it, then his life and of those close to him, including his partner are in jeopardy. Those new entries that are not good at magical combat must demonstrate enhanced abilities in the other areas of examination, like concealment and disguise, and stealth and tracking. Auror training lasts for three years, but those that are unable to demonstrate some abilities in the areas I mentioned will not be allowed for training. The good thing is that if you last for a minute while dueling an Auror, you won't have to be tested on the other areas to be accepted for training."

"Hmm. That's good. I just hope I can last a minute." replied Ron. "I have to think of something to last a minute."

"No you don't. If you try to defend yourself to last a minute, they will have you. Go on the offensive from starters. Even if we don't defeat them. That will at least make them use defensive spell that will buy as more time." stated Harry.

"Yes, Harry is right, son. Focus on that." added Mr. Weasley.

Ron just nodded.

The talk lasted the few more minutes the plates required to be emptied. After that. Everyone went to the chimney and left for the Ministry of Magic.


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note:**

-As always, special thanks to HyperLily for helping correct this chapter.

* * *

**Chapter Six**

**Ministry of Magic**

**August 24, 1998**

Harry burst out from one of the fireplaces. There were a lot of witches and wizards coming and going, but Harry's clarity immediately allowed him to identify his threats. He chuckled when the camera flashes from several reporters lighted up the huge atrium. Several of them were seated in the fountain of magical brethren, and immediately stood up upon seeing him.

He didn't have to worry about anything, as security was tight. Magical law enforcement officers were there keeping everything in order, but if for some reason someone was able to get through them, the Weasleys had instinctively flanked him. There was no reason for that, but it seemed to have become a habit for the family.

The screams of questions coming from the reporters were loud. Questions like: _'How did you defeat the Dark Lord?'... 'Where have you been these last months?' … 'Are you joining the Aurors to help hunt the missing Death Eaters?'_ were asked in a blur of shouts. They moved forward without impediment and finally reached the Golden doors where Eric Munch was registering wands. There were several people in line, including the Weasleys. One after the other they were allowed in after registration.

When Harry's turn arrived, he placed both of his wands on the desk.

Eric looked at Harry with some nervousness. Everyone around them was watching and the fact that the elder wand was on top of his desk didn't make things easier. "Eh... Mr. Potter. Regulations allow one wand per Wizard."

Harry answered calmly. "I use both."

"Eh... I understand that you may use both wands, Mr. Potter. But only one is allowed inside, as you can only use one."

Harry shook his head slowly, and looking at Eric directly in the eyes replied calmly, and with a low voice. "I use both... at the same time."

Eric straightened at Harry's answer. The stares of everyone around waiting to get in helped resolve the situation. "I'm sure there won't be a problem, Mr. Potter. Please..." he added with a hand gesture. "You may go in."

Harry and the Weasleys got one of the elevators for themselves. They pressed the second level button, and shortly arrived to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement.

Mr. Weasley guided them through the corridors until they reached a double door flanked by two Aurors. They were verifying the identity of people entering against an attendant list.

After the verification process, they were allowed to enter a very big room. To Harry's surprise, it was the exact replica of the room he had been in at Flamel's house. It was now clear that the immortal Wizard had done so that Harry could feel accustom to where he was going to be dueling. The only difference to the room in Flamel's house was the bleachers installed on one side, and where a great deal of people were already seated; a very old looking couple included.

Harry smiled. He had seen Flamel in pictures and drawings, and knew immediately that the old couple was Nicholas and his wife. This seemed to be the way they wanted to be known. Two old, decrepit and inoffensive people. You could only see them with tenderness. How misleading appearances were, as only age made them old, but Harry knew that behind that disguise were two physically young and extremely powerful immortal witch and wizard.

"_Hi."_ thought Harry, in his mind.

Without turning to look at him, Flamel answered strongly in Harry's mind. _"Hi, Harry."_

Flamel's wife on the other hand turned to look at him at a distance, and smiled, while at the same time a female voice spoke in his mind. _"Hi, Harry. I'm Perenell, Nicholas' wife. I would have liked to meet you before, but you two were too busy. I hope next time we'll have some time to talk."_

"_I would love that."_ answered Harry in his mind. He hoped the message went through as he had just thought out loud without any knowledge of telepathy.

"_It did."_ answered Flamel in a chuckle referring to the telepathic message being received.

Harry only blushed.

There were a few more telepathic messages back and forth while Harry walked towards the bleachers, and then everything continued as normal. The Weasleys seated close to the front. Ginny said good bye to Harry, while Ron and him walked towards the front and into individual chairs in front of the bleachers. There, all of the new entries were being seated. Seamus and Neville were already there, and had saved two places for them.

"Hi, Harry, Ron." said Seamus, while Neville mimicked the same.

"Hi." replied Harry, while Ron nodded behind him. "Who else is joining that we know?"

"I convinced Dean!" said Seamus in excitement.

"Really?" asked Harry.

"Yeah, it wasn't easy but I did." replied Seamus with a smile.

"Who else?" asked Ron.

"Well," added Neville pointing to the door. "There is Ernie Macmillan, and Parvati Patil. Padma didn't join."

"Also Susan Bones..." added Seamus before being interrupted.

"Susan? Joining the Aurors?" asked Ron.

"Her parents were killed, Ron." replied Neville with a shrug. "I think she'll make it a purpose in life for that to never happen again…" He paused for a second before adding with a little awkwardness "Eh… I mean… for other people."

Ron's eyes just went round.

Seamus continued. "Terry Boot is also joining, as well as Cho Chang, and ..." he was interrupted again.

"Cho? Oh ohh! I don't think Ginny is going to like that." added Harry

Ron chuckled. "I don't think so mate. But I can't wait to see her face."

"Michael Corner is also joining." added Seamus, and then chuckled while adding. "So I guess she'll have confused feelings?"

The four of them laughed.

"Anyone else?" asked Harry.

"None that we know." replied Seamus.

"And how do you know all of this?" asked Ron.

"We have been working with the Aurors since we left Hogwarts, Ron. Remember that the Minister asked us for help?" replied Neville.

"Oh yeah, I've forgotten. How has it been? Have you duel someone? Have you captured Death Eaters?"

Neville frowned and answer. "No. It's been boring. We have been working as guards mostly. Low level assignments they say. We are not to be risked."

"Yeah, but we are at least helping free the most experienced Aurors and Hit Wizards to do their jobs." added Seamus with pride.

"You have been trained?"

"No. Not a thing. They just tell us where we need to be, and at what time, and what is expected from us, but nothing more." answered Neville. "It's what Seamus said. We are just helping to free the experienced officers to manage more pressing matters. They are extremely undermanned. They have suffered terrible losses, not only the Aurors, but the entire Department. It's been several years since they have accepted new recruits, at least for Auror training. Now count the chairs, 28 of them.

Ron looked at the chairs and frowned. "Where do the rest come from? You said:" Ron started using his fingers to count. "Susan, Terry, Cho, Michael, Ernie, Parvati, ehh... Dean, you, and you, Harry, and me. Eleven from Hogwarts. Where are the rest from?"

"We haven't seen them. Only those that fought at Hogwarts and mostly from the DA had joined in helping. For the rest, I guess it's their first time here, graduates from other schools, and probably everyone who has the NEWTS or abilities. I don't know. But there are a few older people seated, so your guess is as good as mine." answered Neville.

They kept on talking as the room filled up, and everyone was seated. A podium was conjured in front of the seats, and the Minister of Magic, and the Head of the Auror Office took turns on their speeches.

More than half an hour later, Gawain Robards, Head of the Auror Office was finishing his speech. "You'll each face one of four of our top Aurors in a duel. They have the best dueling marks in the Department of Magical Law enforcement. It is not required for you to defeat them. It's only a test of your abilities for us to decide if you are fit to join the Aurors. Those of you who are able to hold for a full minute while dueling one of them, will be accepted immediately for Auror training. Those who don't will face some other aptitude test in order to see if you are fit for training."

"If for some reason, you are unable to pass the required marks, you will not be accepted into the Auror Office, but you'll still be able to apply for training as an officer of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement." Gawain then chuckled. "Now, if for some reason you are able to defeat an Auror in duel, you'll not only secure your position for Auror training, but you'll have the privilege of becoming part of the honored few who had been able to achieve such a fit."

"As a tradition, the one who defeats an Auror will have to face two on a second duel. No new entry had been able to defeat two at the same time." Gawain smiled and laughed at his next comment. "It's also a traditional bet for every Head Auror to give a month salary to the one able to do so." he chuckled "I hope you all fail... or my wife will kill me."

The entire room laughed.

"He seems like a nice guy." stated Harry.

"Oh! He's not." replied Seamus. "Well, at least not when he is barking orders. They say, he is very strict and bad tempered."

"Well, in a way it's understandable. He has to be strict to be head of the Auror Office." added Neville.

The next few minutes were spent vanishing the chairs and podium, and showing the new entries the dueling schedule. The 28 new entries were divided into the 4 Aurors that were there for the duelings.

"Oh! I don't envy you Harry. That guy is the top Auror dueler. They say he's better than Moody. Hey I'm not saying that we have it easy with the other three. They are tough also, but nowhere near him. I guess they don't want you to have it easy." said Seamus.

"Really? Better than Moody? Bloody hell, Harry. I don't envy you either. I just hope mine is not as tough." added Ron.

"They all are, Ron. They are the top four." stated Neville.

"We'll be alright." said Harry, without any fear in his voice. After the night he just had, being trashed by Flamel for more than an hour, there was little the top dueling Auror could do to make him feel uncomfortable. He'll face him head on, and with a clear mind. After the duel, he'll know if he was good enough, but for now he just said to the others smiling. "We'll face them head on, and we'll see if they got what it takes to defeat the DA."

"That's the spirit, mate. We won't let them breath." replied Seamus.

Neville and Ron just looked at them as if they had lost a screw, but the comments did help Ron feel sure of himself.

The first duels started, and it was clear that the Aurors really had it in them. None of the new entries made it more than twenty seconds. Michael Corner was the first of the Hogwarts students to duel, and he had the bad luck to face the Auror Harry had to face.

Michael's first mistake was to defend himself. He was just able to raise a Protego charm, when just a few strong spells buckled it. Micheal ended bounded in the floor. He's wand in the Auror's hand.

The rest followed. Neville lasted more than a minute and secured his place in Auror training, but was finally defeated. Susan Bones, Cho Chang, Ernie Macmillan, Parvati Patil and Dean Thomas followed the same fate. They were all defeated, but were at least able to last more than a minute.

Terry Boot, had the misfortune of facing the same Auror Harry had to face, and was defeated before the minute passed. He had at least been able to give the Auror some fight.

The turn for Seamus arrived, and he was the first to really give a strong fight. He was also defeated, but he had placed the Auror in severe strain. His duel lasted for four minutes.

The last two fights were mysteriously reserved for Ron, and Harry. It was clear that the two of them were the ones with the greatest expectation from everyone, as they were part of the famous trio who defeated Voldemort.

Ron walked towards his dueling position. If he was afraid or nervous, he wasn't showing it. He was focused. His eyes were on the Auror. Both were looking at each other as if searching for weaknesses. The tension in the air was high. The commence signal from Gawain was heard, and Ron acted immediately.

A stupefy spell lurched forward towards the Auror, but his opponent was fast and deflected Ron's spell with ease, but he still had to dodge several times as Ron wasn't holding back. He finally recovered and was able to assault Ron with intensity.

Ron jumped out of the way of several spells, as he wasn't given time to cast a protection charm, and while rolling through the floor, he was able to send some spells towards the Auror which got his opponent out of balance for him to regain his foothold.

The fight intensified, and the Auror's face changed completely. He understood he wasn't facing a rookie. Not even a minute had passed and he was feeling the strain. This young man was fighting as if he had nothing to lose, and every second that passed was making him bolder and bolder. The red headed boy was like a demon in flames for him, but he was an Auror, the best of the best, and he wasn't going to let a boy beat him.

The Auror shot a strong reducto spell towards Ron. The shield he was holding was hit with such strong force that he was sent flying backwards, but thankfully landed on his feet with only a little shock on his face that only lasted a second as he started the attack again.

Ron remembered what Harry had told him. If he wasn't able to defeat an enemy head on, he had to find a weakness for him to exploit. The situation at that time was clear. He had fought well, and even though he was sure he would be able to last a minute, he also had the strange feeling that he wasn't at this Auror's dueling level. For him it was clear, he had to find another way around this guy or he wasn't going to make it.

Another strong spell grazed past him, but what happened next was a mix of strong hilarity and perfect tactics.

A spell left his wand, but missed the Auror by some margin, while he run to avoid being hit by the incoming Auror's spells. The Auror thought Ron had missed, but a second spell Ron fired went into the same side just a little higher, and then a third.

Ron had conjured a chair, and then transfigured it into a walking wooden peon. The Peon was a joke, as it still had some resemblance to a chair as his spell had not been very effective, but it still was about to raise his arm to attack the Auror when the third spell Ron had casted conjured an activated Howler. The scream was hilarious, but it did its job, the Auror jumped by the sound, and by the sight of a wooden thing attacking him.

The Auror's self-preservation instincts did the same as Hermione when she was attacked by Harry's grotesque branch transfigurations. He moved his wand towards the wooden peon, and that was what Ron was waiting for. The Peon was vanished at the same time an expelliarmus spell struck the Auror. He was thrown into the wall by Ron's strong spell, but the Auror still defended himself and ran towards Ron to bring him down. Ron acted fast and petrified the Auror whose resounding thud filled the room as he collapsed into the floor.

Cheers went into the air.

Mr. Weasley shouted "That's my son!"

George shouted "That's my little bro!"

And after the two first shouts, everyone started screaming in victory. Ron was purple to say the least. Flashes from the reporters' cameras filled the room.

Some Aurors moved to help the beaten Auror, who stood up after a few seconds. He just nodded at Ron. He wasn't happy of being defeated, but he had been defeated fairly, and had accepted the results.

Gawain moved towards the center and with a Sonorous charm addressed the assembly. "Congratulations Mr. Weasley, you have been the first in years to defeat an Auror in the examinations. You can count yourself with the very few of having accomplish such a fit. We are also honored of welcoming into the Auror Office such a capable wizard. I'm sure that Death Eaters and any law breakers will shy away at your appearance. You are a perfect addiction to the force."

"Now, I'm afraid that as tradition states, you must face two Aurors at the same time." He laughed and added. "And I have to remind you that if I have to pay you a month salary, the next duel you'll have, will be with my wife."

Everybody laughed again.

The seconds passed, and the cheers died away as two Aurors including the one he just fought stood in front of him ready to fight.

The signal was given, and in less than ten seconds, Ron was bounded and without a wand. Two Aurors were just too much, but everyone in the room still cheered for Ron.

The final fight had finally come. Harry stood in front of the tough looking Auror. The room was silent with expectation. People were nervous as they had all seen the speed at which this Auror defeated everyone. Ginny was literally eating her nails, and Mrs. Weasley had to snap her hands out of her mouth to control her.

George spoke to his dad. "I don't know how Harry is going to last a minute against this guy."

Mr. Weasley just nodded.

"Have a little faith bro." added Bill.

"Yezzz, Arry iz a goot faiter." stated Fleur.

"I don't doubt that, it's just that this guy is... Well, you have seen him." replied George.

Bill frowned and said. "You are right about that."

"Arry azz faized …" but Fleur could not finish her sentence when the duel started.

Harry's calmness spread through his body. Clarity was all he had. He saw the Auror raise his wand towards him at the same time he pulled both of his wands out of his sleeves. The elder wand created a strong protego charm, while his phoenix feather wand released a stunning spell. Harry saw the Auror wand release another, but he was seeing things in such slow motion that he didn't have to use his protective shield as he just moved out of the way.

This wasn't a fight against Flamel, and what he had been forced to endure last night, had given him clarity and power above what this Auror had faced before. The law enforcement officer was ready, but the question was if he was ready to face Harry.

Harry's stunning spell was deflected by the Auror, but before the elite officer could start fighting with the aggressiveness he had fought before, Harry's two wands started mauling him with an intensity he had never seen before.

Harry sent conventional spells, but at the same time casted all kinds of spells. He mas mimicking what he had done to Flamel, and while to the immortal wizard it had been child's play, to the Auror, it was a wizard storm.

An expelliarmus spell left one wand, while the other sent water, while the other followed with a freezing charm, while the other followed with a transfiguration spell on the wall, only to follow by the same transfiguration spell from the other wand, the other followed with a bird conjuring spell, then another stunning spell, then an expecto patronum.

Soon the Auror was not only facing combat spells, but also spells that were normally not used in a confrontation. A pair of transfigured warriors made their way to attack him; a Patronus and several conjured birds were not only messing with the Auror attention but were also pinning him down. All the area around him was slippery with Harry's water and freezing charm that it was making it almost impossible for him to move.

The only thing that had the Auror still on his feet was a very strong protection shield. But if people watching were impressed by the strength of the field protecting the Auror, what they were about to see would give a new meaning to the word impressed.

With the Auror engaged from all sides, and pinned to a single position, Harry was free to act.

His opponent could not flee through apparition as the Ministry was protected against that, so he had been very fast in forcing the Auror into a single fixed position. The protection field he was watching was one of the strongest he had seen. His own one was surely stronger, and probably Flamel had a stronger one too, but the immortal wizard seemed to not have had the need to use it.

He centered the image of the Auror in his mind, and then struck with a force few had seen before. His Elder want sent a powerful reducto spell, followed by a stunning spell from his phoenix feather wand, and by an expelliarmus spell again by his Elder wand.

The first not only buckled the Auror shield, but sent him flying away. The stunning spell struck him center in the chest as he was flying backwards. The Auror landed unconscious in the receiving hands of the two transfigured warriors, only to absorb in his unconscious state the expelliarmus spell. His wand flew gracefully into Harry hand.

In less than 15 seconds the duel was over. For a moment there was complete silence in the room. Everybody was shocked by what they had seen. But soon, the three persons that had seen Harry fight after he had gained his new inner strength shouted in victory. Ginny was first, followed by Hermione and then Ron. Soon the entire room erupted in cheers.

Minister Shacklebolt was speechless but with a big smile, but Gawain Robards needed a poke from the Minister to react. His face was completely stunned. He looked as if he had been petrified. He turned to look at Shacklebolt with such a stunned face that he was clearly saying that everything he had said about Harry had fallen very well below what he was seeing.

The Minister smiled and said with a strong voice so that he could be allowed to be heard in the storm of cheers. "I'm as impressed as you are, Gawain. I have never seen Harry fight like this before. Not even against Voldemort. I'm sure you are curious as I am to know how he is able to do the things he just did, but I think that for the moment you should concentrate on going out there and saying something."

Gawain just nodded and stood slowly and walked towards the center of the room.

In the meantime, Harry looked as if he was in a trance, while in reality, he was just paying attention to something only available to him, and again, only available in his mind.

"_Control your pride, Harry. Don't let the emotions of the others feed you. You don't need to be admired or revered to have the value you know you have. Concentrate on the task at hand. Smile in respect of what you are being offered, but set aside the emotions they generate. Those are just low level vibrational energies that will only impede your evolutionary advancement. It's good for you to wash yourself in those energies, because you need to know them to be able to identify what is good and what is not, but concentrate on filling yourself with the high vibrational energies you already control. Take a deep breath, and let that soothing calmness make a home in you_."

Harry heard Flamel's words in his mind, and just said. "Thanks, Nicholas." He took a deep breath, and calmness washed away the blushing his face was starting to experience. He made the emotion of grandeur, the feelings of victory to walk away from him, and their place was replaced by the calmness which allowed him to look things with clarity, and that at the same time provided him with power at knowing everything that was happening in his surroundings.

He saw the crowd shouting out of control; Ginny beaming in pride with a huge smile; Fleur saying something to a smiling Bill and George; Mr. and Mrs. Weasley looking at him with the proud-full face only parents can give. Reporters were flashing their cameras on his direction; Members of the DA shouting in victory. He could see a smiling Shacklebolt near a standing Robards. The Head of the Auror Office started walking towards the center, and soon cleared his throat casting a Sonorous charm.

"Yes... Yes... an impressive victory, but please let us have order in this room. This is an examination." said Gawain Robards.

The sound of the room slowly faded. Silence returned, and Gawain was able to speak with every one paying attention.

He turned to look at Harry, and said. "I'm impressed, Mr. Potter. The skill and strength you just showed is something I have never seen before. I should have expected something like this from the one who defeated He-who..." Gawain stop short of saying 'must-not-be-named' and gathered some strength before saying "Voldemort. But I have to be honest, and say that I never expected to see such a young, skillful and power wizard. It is an honor to have you join our ranks. I hope that along Mr. Weasley, another young and skillful wizard, you'll help strengthen the Auror Office so that we are able to regain the peace we so desperately need."

Harry just nodded.

Gawain continued. "I'm now really afraid of following tradition. You must face two Auror at the same time, and I'm probably going to have to face my wife later tonight."

Everybody laughed, before the voice of a witch could be heard among the crowd.

Harry turned to see the elderly woman stand while talking. "Don't let this old fool fool you, Mr. Potter. He's just a cheap bastard." the witched laughed. "I hope you are able to show him that gambling is not the way of doing things. Don't worry about our economy; we are good as we are. I'll have him wash some dishes for a few months so that he learns not to bet." the witched just smiled with laughter.

The room erupted in laughs. It was clear that Gawain and his wife had a good teasing relation, and that made the situation even funnier.

Gawain spoke again. "Well, now that you have my wife's permission, and that I know what I'll be doing for the next few months, you have a clear way at facing two Aurors." He shook his head and added. "I won't complain if I lose the bet."

The room continued laughing, while two Aurors including the one Harry had just faced, moved into position to face him. The one he just defeated had clearly changed. His face was one of concentration. He seemed ready to attack at the second. The defeat he just suffered seemed to fuel his resolved in making quick work of Harry, and with the help of a fellow Auror, he was sure he had the necessary strength to defeat him.

Harry on the other hand was not taken aback. He was seeing the two Aurors at the same time as Gawain moved away.

A few seconds passed. The room was filled with expectations, but completely silent. Gawain's signal was heard, and the Aurors acted immediately, the same as Harry.

Harry could see two spells making their way towards him. His phoenix feather wand produced a strong protego spell, while a strong cracking sound was the effect of his elder wand transfigurating part of the floor into a wall the size of Harry. The two strong spells struck Harry's protego shield. It kept strong until two more buckled it. The wall resisted what came through, but Harry was already on one side with his two wands acting in unison against the weakest Auror.

A repeat of the previous engagement was seen as the helping Auror was beaten in less than ten seconds. The thunderous sound of six powerful spells hitting the unsuspecting wizard filled the room, while the law enforcement officer fell to the ground.

Harry's attention now concentrated on the strong Auror. A spell was making its way to him, and he was forced to cast another protego charm while taking cover in the wall he transfigured. The couple of seconds that took, the Auror used to re-enervate his companion, but Harry was fast out of cover, and the strong Auror was barely able to move away as several spells struck the just waking officer. He fell again with a thud.

The strong Auror tried immediately to attack Harry, but was forced into evasion by several spells cast by him.

Another Patronus left the elder wand and headed to distract the Auror, but the Auror seemed to be aware of Harry's intention, so he changed his strategy.

Harry destroyed his protective wall with a reducto spell from the elder wand. The pieces of rubble flew through the air, and Harry quickly used another spell to send everything flying in the direction of the Auror. The rubble and his patronus convene at the same time. The Auror was rocked hard by the pieces and was barely recovering when he was unarmed and bounded by Harry's spells.

The battle was over in less than thirty seconds, and it was the first time in history in which a new entry defeated two Aurors at the same time.

The commotion on the room was huge. Harry couldn't avoid feeling the blushing rush get hold of him. He took a deep breath as best as he could to try to calm himself, but the adrenaline, and the victory shouts didn't help him at all. Flamel was completely out of Harry's mind. There was no counsel, and upon seeing him, the immortal wizard just smiled. Harry understood that he was letting him go through it alone. That he had only identified something to keep in mind, but that it was time for Harry to deal with it on his own. Harry understood what was happening, and with another deep and slow breath, he regained the calmness he needed to see things clearly.

Again, he saw everyone shouting. Ginny and Hermione's faces were full of happiness. Their smiles grew almost to their ears. Bill and Fleur were hugging each other, while George was screaming something he just couldn't figure out, but it must have been funny, as many people around him were laughing hard. Shacklebolt elbowed a stunned Gawain, who immediately got out of his stupor, and stood up to face the assembly

The Head of the Auror Office walked towards the middle of the room. He gave Harry a small glance with a perplexed look, and then just carried forward. He stood in front of everyone, and didn't bother in shutting people down. He just waited for a few seconds until everyone went quite after seeing his face.

Silence returned to the room and still Gawain didn't speak. He turned to Harry, and asked a small question as if trying to dispel doubts. "Are you the new Dumbledore, Mr. Potter?" he smiled and shook his head in disbelief, and then continued addressing the assembly. "I have no words to what I just saw. On the first fight I could have said: beginners luck, but after watching this last one, I'm completely sure that Mr. Potter's abilities are far ahead from what I believed possible. I ..." He paused for a moment with his eyes transfixed on something, before turning to look at Harry again and added. "You have a quick mind, Mr. Potter, your spells are strong, and judging by the work you performed with Mrs. Granger and Mr. Weasley against Voldemort and his Death Eaters, you are also a team player."

"You have all the ingredients necessary to become a powerful Auror," He turned to see the rest of the new entries and continued his speech. "but becoming an Auror does not guarantee that you'll not be killed. The War with the Death Eaters was devastating to this Office and to the whole Magical Law Enforcement Department. A quick mind will not save you if you are attack in your sleep. Strong spells won't save you if you are cornered and swarm by opponents. Team work will not save you, if your team is corrupted and sold to your enemy. That is what we suffered in this war. Many of our officers were killed in their sleeps, poisoned while eating, ambushed and swarmed in the most horrible ways, and worst of all, we had members turned to serve the Dark Lord."

"The War is over. Voldemort is dead, but we are a long way from being safe. We need to rebuild the Auror Office and the Magical Law Enforcement Department with strong ethical and moral roots. We need to work in ways where our officers do not expose themselves to treachery or ambushes to guarantee their survival. This Office will evolve, and every Auror will become warriors of Light not only on the outside, but inside as well. We will not only be recognized as a force against darkness, but as individuals with unsurpassed ethical and moral standards..."

Harry continued hearing Gawain's inspiring words, but at the same time he saw as Perenell elbowed Flamel. The immortal wizard smiled impishly, and shrugged and frowned to his wife. At the same time, Gawain stopped talking with a confused face.

Harry heard Perenell's voice in his mind _"Your friend here, seems to think that his speeches are better than Mr. Gawain's."_

"_You know it's not that." _replied Flamel, clearly talking to Perenell and Harry at the same time _"I just think it is important for Harry and every other joining their ranks to know why they were almost wiped out. Harry needs to know that it doesn't matter how powerful any one is, there is always a way to defeat one. They all need to know to be humble to think clearly in how to proceed, ..." _Flamel paused for a second_ "Yes, and I need to be humble and accept that I was wrong to meddle with Gawain's mind. I accept that. I will pay Karma for this, but I will pay it gladly if Harry and his friends learn to treat opponents with the respect they deserve. No matter how weak they seem to be..."_

Flamel continued explaining his motive to influence Gawain's mind, but in the middle of the room, a confused Gawain only said. "As I said, I have no words to describe what I saw, but enough of this." He turned to Harry. "You won the bet Mr. Potter, but you also gained my respect." He laughed lightly and added. "And probably the fear of our enemies." Gawain then turned to the people seating in the bleachers and thank them for being there in support of the new entries. He then turned to the assembly and addressed the new entries. "You will all receive a letter to either inform you of other tests, or of your acceptance to either the Auror Office or the Magical Law Enforcement Department. Training as Aurors or Law Enforcement officers will begin next Monday. That will be all. You are dismissed."


End file.
